Sword of War
by Peter Syntie
Summary: The forces of evil are set on ending humanity's existence. What difference could one knight make? Stronger Jaune AU
1. Chapter 1

**DISCLAIMER: This is a work of fan fiction using characters from the world of "RWBY", which is owned by Rooster Teeth. All the characters in this story are created and owned by Rooster Teeth and I do not claim any ownership over them or the world of Remnant. I am not profiting financially from the creation and publication of this story. Please support the official release.**

* * *

The story begins with our hero, Jaune Arc, on his way to the school of his dreams, Beacon academy. The journey had been long but thankfully without major complications. Grimm weren't interested in parties of one, not enough negativity to go around. He had been travelling by motorcycle for a week now and the city of Vale was a welcome sight.

"We made it, girl," he said giving his bike a pat.

Llamrei, named for his great-great-grandfather's legendary warhorse. The times had changed but the traditions remained and every knight needed a noble steed to take him into battle. His had been a gift from his father for his 14th birthday. It had a matte white finish with gold trims and the family crest on the fairing. His mother hadn't been too thrilled about the gift but there wasn't anything she could do about it and his father swelled with pride over his incredible gifting intuition.

The pleasant memory tugged his lips into a smile. He wondered what his family was up to. Did they miss him already? Were they worried?

Without a doubt but crossing the wilderness meant going through areas lacking CCT coverage. There simply hadn't been the opportunity to inform them of his progress. He could already picture their thrilled expressions knowing he had arrived safely. He revved his bike and headed on towards Beacon.

* * *

After fighting through the rush hour traffic he finally arrived at the school grounds. He removed his helmet to free his blonde mane and get an up-close view of the academy. His father, his grandfather and every Arc before him had all attended Beacon. It was now his turn to write his own tales of heroism.

Looking towards the horizon he spotted a tiny spec, an airship, heading this way. He could feel his stomach turning just thinking about flying here. His mother argued that it was the safest way to travel and she was right but he couldn't risk a repeat of last time, the incident still haunted him to this day.

With his future classmates approaching he had plenty of time to park Llamrei and slip into something more comfortable. The choice fell on a white hoodie with two yellow arcs embroidered across the chest and a pair of worn blue denim pants. For his combat gear he decided on black, hard plastic shin and knee guards and for his upper body a set of gilded shoulder and elbow pads.

Ok, so maybe he didn't exactly look the part of the fairytale knight but it didn't matter. Victory often lie in deceit and underestimating him in battle would be a grave mistake. Besides, full plate armors were heavy and with his aura reserves and semblance they didn't add much to the table.

The kevlar reinforced hard plastic was light and durable and as for the gilded armor pieces, those served a different purpose... they complimented his family crest and tied the look together. All in the name of vanity.

Lastly, his weapons. He strapped the family heirloom, Crocea Mors, to his hip and his second sword, Ferrum Bellum, to his back. He had gone through a wide variety of weapons, both real and improvised, but somehow he had always found himself drawn back to the humble longsword. For the longest part of his life that honor had belonged solely to Crocea but apparently forging your own weapon was an important step in becoming a huntsman, or so his father had claimed.

Enter Ferrum Bellum, Crocea's identical twin. He had gotten the idea from his many sparrs. There had been situations where he had resorted to using his scabbard without shifting it into its shield mode. It allowed him to parry his opponents attacks and strike in a moment's notice. It was basically a tourney sword, so why not have an actual one in its stead. The only difference between the two had been some minor modifications to the scabbard. Modifications that he of course brought over to the original as well. Something his grandfather hadn't been too thrilled about.

After gearing up he dropped off the rest of his belongings at the designated area and proceeded to the courtyard. He had an hour to burn before the headmaster would address all the newcomers and more importantly, inform them off their sleeping arrangements. He found it strange that the dorms had not been prepared for their arrival but his thoughts were cut short when an explosion rang across the school grounds.

His ancestral blade had already been drawn half way out of its sheath and his body turned in the direction of the sound. He spotted two girls arguing with a third one joining the fight. Thankfully, it stayed verbal and ended as quickly as it began. The girl that had been at the center of the dispute, the one dressed in red and black, fell flat on her back. He decided to go over and help her out.

She looked like she could use a break.

* * *

"Hey... I'm Jaune."

"Ruby," she took his hand to get back up.

He immediately noticed her silver eyes. He had never seen such a trait before. A couple of folktales had mentioned them in passing but his imagination hadn't done them justice. They were a beautiful sight to behold.

"So, I didn't see you on the airship, are you a student here?" asked the girl.

"Yeah, I mean, I wasn't… it's actually a bit of a story."

She tilted her head, "Care to share?"

"I have motion sickness."

"That doesn't sound that bad."

"It _is_ , I can't travel by air without losing my lunch. When I was younger, there was this school field trip where I threw up on the teacher. Everybody called me Vomit Boy after that."

She giggled at the story, "Vomit Boy, I'll have to remember that one."

He went pale, "Please don't."

She laughed at his reaction.

"Well, then I'll call you crater face."

"Hey, that explosion was an accident."

He narrowed his eyes at the girl, "Okay, so no stupid nicknames. Deal?"

"Deal…"

They shared a brief smile before an awkward silence fell between them. Ruby was the first to break it.

"So I got this thing," she said and unveiled her weapon.

"Whoa, is that scythe?"

"It's also a customizable high-impact sniper rifle."

"Impressive."

"So what've you got?"

"I've got these swords," he drew Crocea Mors from his hip but only pointed at his second blade with his other hand. Drawing from the back was difficult but it made carrying the 2 swords a lot easier. He was sure his new acquaintance wouldn't mind. The swords looked identical, anyway.

"Ooh!"

He then transformed the empty scabbard, "I've got this shield too."

"Wow"

Putting the two together he showed off their final form, "And when I really want to put the hurt on my opponent, a two-hander."

"So what do they do?" the reaper asked.

"They, don't do anything, they're just weapons."

She gasped at the statement and started comforting her scythe, "Don't listen to him, Crescent Rose, he doesn't understand what we have."

He cleared his throat to get her attention, "What I meant was that on their own, they're just weapons and I'm just a guy but when we're together, my sword and I, there's this connection. I can't explain it but it's like my sword is a part of me. My aura protects it from harm and it in turn lends me its strength. We draw from each other and achieve things neither of us could otherwise do on our own."

"You do understand," whispered Ruby before shaking herself out of her daze, "Well, I'm kind of a dork when it comes to weapons, so... I guess I did go a little overboard when designing it."

"Wait, you made that?" he was astonished. He could barely follow sheer complexity of it. A collapsing blade as well as a functional firearm. It truly was a work of art.

"Everybody at Signal forges their own weapon."

"You forged it?"

"Yup!"

"Furnace, hammer and anvil?"

"I mean… I designed her… and had the parts ordered… I guess the 3D printer did most of the work... but I assembled everything all by myself and sharpened her afterwards."

"It's okay, it's still one of the coolest weapons I've ever seen. Mine can't really compare. Crocea Mors is a hand-me-down and Ferrum Bellum is entirely based off its design. I didn't bother with any sort of personal touch other than the two-handed mode. Truth is, it already felt perfect the way it was. I didn't have the heart to change it."

"Well, not many people have an appreciation for the classics these days."

"Thanks."

"So how come you're all alone? Don't you have any friends you'd rather be with?"

"No, none of my friends came to Beacon because I didn't go to a combat school. I never received any formal education. My father and grandfather trained me since I was 6. You'd think they'd go easy on me cause we're family but those two must've been the strictest teachers in all of Sanus."

"I can relate, it was the same with me and my uncle..." she started looking around, "hey, where are we going?"

Only now did it dawn on him that they had been walking for the duration of their little chat, "No idea… I think the garages are somewhere in that direction… or was it there… maybe there's a directory somewhere," he stopped his babbling when his eyes landed on Ruby who was struggling to keep back her laughter.

"You don't know either, do you?"

"Nope"

He sighed in frustration but Ruby's good mood was infectious. He couldn't help but join her laugh at their situation.


	2. Chapter 2

**DISCLAIMER: This is a work of fan fiction using characters from the world of "RWBY", which is owned by Rooster Teeth. All the characters in this story are created and owned by Rooster Teeth and I do not claim any ownership over them or the world of Remnant. I am not profiting financially from the creation and publication of this story. Please support the official release.**

* * *

"This way," he called for his new friend.

Through combined efforts they managed to retrace their steps and find the auditorium where the rest of their classmates had already gathered. He stopped at the entrance to catch his breath. They had been running in fear of being late for the headmaster's speech. The exercise had left him quite winded. He could run four minutes the mile in full gear and he wanted to commend Ruby for keeping pace but what left him stunned was the fact that the reaper didn't seem at all tired.

"You need a minute?"

"I'm good," he replied still panting.

After he finally collected himself they entered the building. He scanned the crowd to find a spot with a clear view of the stage when a tall blonde called for Ruby.

"Oh! Hey, I gotta go! I'll see you after the ceremony!"

With that he was once again left to himself. He had gotten the impression that the two of them had really hit things off but apparently he had been wrong. He noticed the white haired girl from before. She was on a direct course for the reaper and the blonde. He could smell trouble brewing and was ready to intervene when a chill ran down the length of his spine.

He was being watched

Like a lonely deer singled out for the kill he too felt a predatory gaze aimed at his back. He carefully brought his hand to the grip of his sword. His fingers slowly wrapped themselves around the handle when the voices of his fellow classmates brought him back to reality.

He was at Beacon.

There were no grimm here.

But his aura hadn't been wrong.

Someone was watching him.

He quickly whipped his head around and caught a redhead look away just in time to avoid his gaze. She was standing by herself and he hadn't a clue what he had done to pique her interest. She seemed nice, maybe she was just too shy to strike up a conversation with a stranger. He decided to break the ice himself.

* * *

She noticed his approach and greeted him with a smile, "Oh, hello, can I help you with something?"

"No, I just saw you there and thought you could use some company."

He offered his hand, "Jaune Arc."

She blinked.

"You… don't know who I am?"

"Umm… I don't think so. Should I?" he asked before taking another look at her.

Judging by the style of her armour he could assume she hailed from southern Anima but red hair and fair skin were a trait more commonly found in the north. She was obviously native to the neighbouring continent but that was all he could tell.

"No, no, sorry, I was just surprised," she brushed a stray lock behind her ear.

It brought his attention to her circlet. The bronze complimented her fiery hair very nicely.

"I don't believe you, I bet you've got cute guys standing in lines for a chance to talk to you," he joked.

"You'd be surprised… Pyrrha Nikos," she finally introduced herself.

The name didn't ring a bell.

"Nice to meet you, Pyrrha. You a first year student here, as well?"

"Why yes, I graduated from Sanctum but I've always wanted to study abroad and with its superb curriculum Beacon felt like the obvious choice."

"Must've been hard leaving all your friends behind, though."

He noticed her pained expression.

"Hard goodbyes, huh? Yeah, I know how you feel."

"Jaune, I…yes, it wasn't easy but I'll manage."

"I guess we're in the same boat then. I only know this one other girl here and she just ditched me."

"I'm sorry to hear that."

He waved it off, "It's no big deal. I've got you, don't I?"

"What do you mean?"

"Well, my mother always said that strangers are just friends you haven't met yet."

He pointed back and forth between them trying to explain his point but the redhead remained confused.

"We met… in my books, that makes us friends."

"We're… friends?" she asked surprised.

"Aren't we?"

She looked at him with wide eyes but he met her with an honest smile.

"Jaune I, wow, I don't know what to say, I… thank you."

"Don't mention it," he replied.

He noticed the sudden increase in attention from the other students. They stole glances of them when they thought he wasn't paying attention and started whispering to each other.

"So, Jaune, why did _you_ apply to Beacon?" asked Pyrrha.

"Well, when you're the latest in a long line of heroes, people have certain… expectations from you.

"I know what you mean," she said with a soft smile, "You felt like it was your destiny to come here."

He snorted at that, "I wish. When I told my father I wanted to become a huntsman he immediately started training me for the day. It was hard work and dedication that got me into Beacon, not destiny."

"Well then, it seems your perseverance has paid off. I'm glad you're here."

"Yeah, me too," he shared a smile with the redhead.

"Well for me it was more like starting over with a blank slate but it seems that my reputation precedes me even here."

"Not my hometown, apparently. Is it anything I should know about?"

"I… I don't want you to get the wrong impression about me."

She seemed uncomfortable about the subject but he had just the thing to ease the tension.

"Wait, you're… you are a natural redhead, right?" he mock-panicked.

She laughed at the comment.

"Cause if you're actually a brunette or something you have to tell me," he continued while barely holding in his own laughter, "come on, Pyrrha, this is serious."

She completely forgot her manners her hand no longer covering her mouth as it turned into a full blown fit.

She wiped a tear when she finally came to, "Jaune, the truth… the truth is that I'm sort of a celebrity."

That much was obvious and it certainly explained the looks they had been getting.

"...Like an actress?"

"Star athlete."

He remained unphased by her confession.

"That's it?"

"It doesn't bother you?"

"Just that you didn't want to tell me."

"I'm sorry. Talking to you was such a nice change from the usual interactions I have with people."

"Fans asking for autographs? "

"For example… so what do you think of me now?"

"Well, I know now that you have a tendency to blow things out of proportion... but I think I can look past that."

She giggled in response.

Their talk was interrupted by the sound of a microphone. The headmaster had taken the stage to address them.

"I'll... keep this brief. You have travelled here today in search of knowledge, to hone your craft and acquire new skills, and when you have finished, you plan to dedicate your life to the protection of the people. But I look amongst you, and all I see is wasted energy, in need of purpose, direction. You assume knowledge will free you of this, but your time at this school will prove that knowledge can only carry you so far. It is up to you to take the first step.

Professor Goodwitch took over after Ozpin left.

"You will gather in the ballroom tonight. Tomorrow, your initiation begins. Be ready. You are dismissed."

His eyes searched for Ruby in the crowd. She had been left just as confused by the speech as him. Meanwhile Pyrrha had dialed a number on her scroll.

"It was nice meeting you, Jaune, but I must be going."

"Didn't the professor say we're sleeping here tonight?"

"I have a hotel reservation in the city, sorry, my mother insisted. Good luck tomorrow!"

He wanted to stop her but before he could say anything the person she was calling picked up and she headed for the exit.

"Who's your new friend, Jaune?" asked the reaper.

"Pyrrha Nikos," he replied absentmindedly. He followed her form until the last glimpse of her fiery ponytail disappeared through the door.

"Yikes, looks like you're in for some tough competition, Rubes."

The reaper pulled her hood over her face in embarrassment.

"Yang Xiao Long, by the way, I think you've already met my sister."

He took another look at Ruby before returning his attention back to the new girl. He could see some resemblance, _if_ he searched for them, but otherwise they were as different as two people could get.

He shook the blonde's hand, "Jaune Arc, short, sweet, rolls off the tongue, ladies love it."

"Ruby and I sure do."

"Yang!" shouted the reaper with a slight blush on her cheeks.

He chuckled at the scene. Maybe he couldn't tell they were sisters at first glance but their relationship definitely reminded him of the one he shared with his own siblings. He also liked to tease them at every opportunity. There was nothing sweeter than embarrassing the heck out of a younger sister.

"Wanna go see if the cafeteria is open. I could use a bite," he suggested.

"Sure," replied Yang.

"So... are you two twins or something?"

"I think you need to get your eyes checked, Lady Killer."

"I meant fraternal twins."

"Nope, half-sisters, same dad," explained the reaper.

"Yup, Ruby got moved ahead 2 years so now she's in the same grade as us," added Yang.

"Wow, 2 years, congrats, you must've done something really special to get into Beacon."

"Yeah I was like - Hoowaah! Witchaa! - no I mean - I have normal knees!"

He blinked at the outburst while Yang snickered, obviously in on the joke. He thought it was best not to ask.

After a snack he left the girls to themselves and spent the remainder of the day sharpening his swords. Focusing his senses he managed to passively absorb the whispers and murmurs that circulated the courtyard. Most of it was garbage but the one that kept coming up was teams and partners. Ruby confirmed the rumour later in the evening but when he asked her she was already dead set on partnering up with her sister. That left him with his only other friend at Beacon, Pyrrha Nikos. Sadly, she was somewhere in Vale and he wouldn't see her until tomorrow.

* * *

Morning had arrived earlier than he would've hoped for. Sleep hadn't come until late in the in the evening. Likely due to a combination of first-night effect and the hard tiles they had been forced to sleep on. After a hefty breakfast he was ready for any challenge the school had to offer. The first being finding his locker. After searching the room twice he realised he had misread his own poor handwriting. He managed to deduce it had been locker G36 he had left his gear in, not 636. Thankfully, nobody was there to witness his mistake. With his swords by his side he made his way to the exit when he spotted a familiar redhead.

She had placed her circlet on her head, completing her attire when she noticed his approach.

"Hello, Jaune," she greeted with a wave,

"Hey there, sleep well?"

"Yes, it was lovely. I had a room with a nice view of the sea. How was your night?"

"I've had better," he replied with a shrug.

"Ready for the initiation ceremony?"

"Yeah... so, I overheard that we're gonna have to find a partner during initiation and since we seem to get along so well I thought that maybe you and I could work together… unless you've already found someone else."

She smiled, "Actually, I believe the teams are formed at random so I can't make you any promises."

He slumped at the reveal.

Pyrrha placed a reassuring hand on his shoulder, "Don't worry, I'm sure anyone would be lucky to have you on their team."

"Thanks"

He left her alone to finish up her preparations. The white haired girl from the previous day scoffed as she passed him by the lockers. He could hear her start a conversation with Pyrrha before he met up with Ruby and Yang.

"Hey, Jaune, did you manage to get Pyrrha on your team?" asked the reaper.

"No, she told me the teams are formed randomly. Doesn't matter anyway, I can manage even if I end up on my own."

"Oum, you're both hopeless," commented Yang rubbing her forehead, "Hey, here's an idea, Ruby, why don't you form a team with Jaune?"

The reaper's expression saddened.

"Trying to pin your sister on me? Shame on you, Xiao Long, shame on you," he said shaking his head at the brawler.

"Can you blame a girl for trying to hitch her sister," she replied with a wink.

Ruby whined while he just chuckled in response.

The speakers echoed through the locker room as Professor Goodwitch informed them the ceremony was about to begin.


	3. Chapter 3

**DISCLAIMER: This is a work of fan fiction using characters from the world of "RWBY", which is owned by Rooster Teeth. All the characters in this story are created and owned by Rooster Teeth and I do not claim any ownership over them or the world of Remnant. I am not profiting financially from the creation and publication of this story. Please support the official release.**

* * *

Getting launched into the Emerald Forest was a fun experience. It definitely beat jumping off the cliffs but with the approaching treeline he had to start getting creative. At the height of his flight arch he turned to pierce the canopy feet first. On the other side he spotted a thick branch. It managed to dramatically slow his descent before breaking. He reached out and grabbed a second one. It also offered some minor resistance before it snapped. After hitting the forest floor he went into a roll, concluding his landing. He dusted himself off and checked his equipment to make sure everything was still in place.

He noticed a trail leading from his landing spot and decided to follow it. It allowed him to make good headway towards his destination. He heard the sound of explosions and gunfire disturb the peaceful forest.

Well, as peaceful as a grimm infested forest could get.

It appeared his classmates had already encountered some enemies. He began wondering how his friends were doing but his thoughts were cut short when he heard some commotion up ahead. With Ferrum Bellum in hand he quietly made his way to the source of the sound. From the edge of the small clearing he saw a wolf standing up against 4 beowolves. The animal was wounded but it held its ground. Grimm didn't normally attack animals but there were occasional territorial disputes between the species. He felt for the wolf, he truly did, but it wasn't his fight. He had nothing to gain from interfering.

But he couldn't just walk away.

"Hey!" he yelled from the top of his lungs.

He stepped forward from his hiding place.

The pack lost all interest in the wolf and instead focused on the knight. With snarls and hisses they slowly drew closer. He had managed to gain the pack's attention and like it or not, he'd have to deal with them before he could proceed. He gave his sword a spin as they surrounded him. He stayed vigilant, keeping tabs on all his adversaries for any signals. One of the beowolves would make the first move it just begged the question which one.

His aura flared as it sensed the danger.

The first attack came from behind, he turned and sliced off the attacker's head mid-pounce. He ducked to avoid the body as it crashed into the dirt in front of him.

Next was an attack from both sides.

He slammed the sword's pommel into the skull of the wolf on his right and then slammed an aura filled fist on top of the left attacker's head. The latter went down and Jaune seized the moment to thrust the tip of his sword through the back of its neck.

The other grimm was still dazed from the pommel strike. He noticed the mosaic cracks that had spread across its bone mask. Before he could finish it he sensed another incoming attack from behind.

He turned and caught a forepaw with his free hand. The beowolf tumbled forward when the knight pulled him in and Jaune used the moment to cut it in half.

It had taken him just seconds to take out 3 beowolves. Their bodies were already evaporating when he turned to the pack's sole survivor. The beast had recovered and was now growling at him but he wasn't intimidated. He took a step closer and the creature visibly flinched. It turned around in an attempt to flee but was stopped. The wolf Jaune had come to save in the first place blocked off its escape. It was barely standing as is but the knight admired the animal's resolve. It was foolish as the grimm quickly recovered from the initial surprise and knocked it away.

Jaune wasn't as merciful.

In a flurry of swings he amputated the beowolf's limbs. Its torso hadn't even hit the ground when he sliced it in half just below the ribcage. Before the light of its sickly yellow eyes faded he struck his sword through the beowolf's throat.

The ending had been slight overkill but overall an easy victory.

But there was still one thing he had to take care of. He walked over to the wolf's side. It was lying on the ground and wouldn't be getting up anytime soon. It was the natural way of things, the strong survived and the weak perished. If this wolf had been foolish enough to challenge grimm he lacked the instincts to make it in this world.

Those argument carried no weight when they stood against his compassion.

He knelt down and brought a hand over the wounded animal. His semblance resonated with the wolf's aura. It's fur was still matted with blood but the wounds quickly closed. Its eyes sprung open and soon it was back on its feet. It smelled the knight's face and gave him a lick.

"Hey, hey, don't get cocky, you're just lucky I found you."

The wolf disappeared into the forest and with that Jaune could get back to his mission. When he turned around he was met with a pair of green eyes staring back at him.

"Sorry if I startled you but I just couldn't bring myself to interrupt your moment."

He shrugged, "Dumb mutt would've died if I'd left it."

"You don't have to pretend, I can feel you have a kind heart, Jaune."

He smiled softly, "So does this mean we're on the same team?"

"It would appear so.

* * *

"What you did to that wolf, I've never seen anyone use their aura to heal another person," she said.

"It's my semblance. I can use it to boost other people's auras."

"Does it work with semblances as well?"

"Already looking for ways to exploit your partner?"

"No, sorry, I was just wondering if-"

"Relax, Pyrrha, I'm just messing with you. Semblance is our aura's physical form so, yeah, it works for those as well," he confirmed.

"Quite impressive."

"Thanks, but not really. I mean, sure, it's fine when you're on the receiving end but for me it just makes for a stronger force field."

"Well, I believe the saying goes, defence is the best offence."

"I think you've got that backwards… so, what does Pyrrha Nikos, star athlete, have up _her_ sleeve?"

"Polarity," she replied with a giggle, "I can control ferrous metals using magnetic force," she demonstrated by snatching Crocea Mors from Jaune's hip. She moved it through the air effortlessly before returning it back to the knight.

"That's cool, you forgot to mention it helps you find blonde knights in the woods."

Her eyes widened, "How did you-"

"I didn't, not really, but judging from your reaction I guess I'm right. It seemed kinda convenient how you managed to find me."

"I'm sorry, I hope you don't mind. I magnetised your armor back in the locker room."

He remembered the hand she placed on his shoulder. It appeared the friendly gesture had carried with it a darker purpose. He could sense a faint magnetic field radiating from it when he focused on it.

"If you'd rather be on a team with someone else I'm sure professor Ozpin would understand," having been caught the champion hung her head in shame.

"I meant it when I asked you to be my partner," he replied with a smile."Now come on, we've got a relic to find."

Pyrrha followed with a spring in her step and a smile on her face.

The path eventually disappeared in the undergrowth but Jaune had gotten a good view of the landscape back when they were launched and Pyrrha was more reliable than any compass. They proceeded north but the sound of gunfire reminded them they weren't the only ones intruding in the Emerald forest.

"Gunfire," noted Pyrrha, "20 meters west from our position."

They all had the same mission, they all passed their entrance exams, they could all take care of themselves but… he had the means to help them.

"They might be in trouble."

They rushed over prepared for battle but were instead met with an amusing sight. The odd companionship of a quiet green clad boy and an energetic ginger girl in a pink skirt. He was just glad nobody was hurt.

The girl was going on about sloth calls when she spotted them.

"Ren, look," she exclaimed, "A random encounter, what will we do?"

"Hey, name's Jaune, this is Pyrrha," the champion waved and gave her own hello. "We heard gunfire coming from your direction so we decided to investigate. Everything okay?"

"Yup, just a creep but Magnhild and I took care of it. There we were locked in a staredown, it wasn't moving an inch and I had pancakes for breakfast…"

Jaune let her continue the story and instead focused on her partner.

"Lie Ren, pleasure to meet you," he replied with a bow.

"There's safety in numbers," he reasoned, "you wanna team up and head for the temple together. I don't think there's a rule against it."

"It would seem like our best bet, let's go, Nora."

* * *

The group cut their way through the forest with Jaune at point. They would reach the temple soon enough provided they didn't run into any trouble. That, however, proved too much to ask as they spotted two ursai directly up ahead. The beasts hadn't noticed them yet and were minding their own business. The save bet would've been to go around and avoid a battle altogether. On the other hand, they had numbers on their side so engaging them would also likely end in their favor. He noticed his new friends were eagerly awaiting his orders. Well, most of them at least, Nora had already whipped out her warhammer and had a maniacal grin on her face.

What surprised him most was the fact that they had just met him but were already willing to follow his commands.

He carefully weighed both options but in the end he chose neither, instead opting for a third one.

"Ren, you seem like a quiet guy, how good are you at sneaking up on grimm?"

Before he could answer Nora already started explaining, "Ren's great, he's basically a ninja and his semblance lets him mask emotions. Poor things never see him coming."

"I can conceal us both if you want to take the ursai out quietly," he added.

It was almost disturbingly appropriate for the situation, he thought.

"Perfect, cloak us and follow my lead, you two wait here until it's over." The girls nodded and the knight and ninja went towards their targets. They remained quiet until the beasts were within leaping distance. Jaune drew his sword and Ren pulled out his guns.

He jumped and drove Crocea into its back. It punctured a lung but otherwise remained a non lethal strike. With the blade firmly embedded in the beast's flesh it served as an anchor to hold him in place. When his mount attempted to throw him off, a firm slap to the back of its head asserted his dominance over the grimm. He looked over to Ren and saw the ninja having some trouble subduing his own ride. He currently needed both hands to keep him from being thrown off. Jaune was about to give him some pointers but it was Nora who rushed in to save the situation.

A swing from her hammer broke the ursa's jaw and suddenly it became completely tame. Pyrrha followed in suit after failing to stop the bubbly girl but with everything under control there was nothing for her to do. She turned towards her partner smirking.

"Room for one more?"

Jaune offered his free hand, to help her up on their improvised mount. She sat behind him and tried to find a tuft of fur to hold onto.

He wouldn't have any of that.

He grabbed her hand and guided it around his waist "Hold on tight, I wouldn't want to lose my partner," he told her. If he had looked back he would've seen the blush forming on the champion's cheeks.

Nora didn't need any encouragement. She was already sitting side-saddle and was hugging Ren but he didn't seem to mind. Before Jaune could give any further instructions Nora drove her heels into the ursa's side and they were off. Jaune was just glad it was in the right direction as he followed. Travelling on ursa allowed them to reach their destination in less than a minute.

"We're winning!" exclaimed the ginger when they burst out of the forest. Just seconds later their mount collapsed from exhaustion... and maybe bloodloss. "Aww, it broke."

Jaune stopped right next to the two and pulled out his sword from the beast's back. It let out a roar but was quickly silenced when he plunged it through its heart. It collapsed and the two of them dismounted as well.

"Why'd you do that, I wanted to keep it," whined Nora.

"I don't think pets are allowed at Beacon," he replied and put away his weapon, "besides if I had let it live it would've just returned as an ursa major."

The temple was just a short walk away. There they found several chess pieces. Nora went for the golden rook, declaring herself queen of the castle. He took the other one deciding not to overthink the situation.

"Think this is it?"

He heard and turned in the direction of the voice. It was Yang and her partner, a girl with a black bow on her head.

"Hey there, Lady killer, see you made it here before us," spoke the brawler.

"Well it's not like this place was very difficult to find," commented he other girl.

After introductions and a very exaggerated reprisal of their own journey here, by Nora, Jaune's attention was drawn to a growing dark object in the sky. As it came closer he realised it was a large nevermore. He followed its flight path and saw something separate from it right on top of them. Nobody else seemed to notice the falling object until it called.

"Heads up!"

The knight extended his arms and the reaper fell right into them. The force itself was enough to create a small crater around his feet. When Ruby's eyes fluttered open they were met with the soft blues of the boy that had come to her rescue for a second time in two days.

"Hey, Ruby," he greeted, "just… dropping in?"

"Yeah," she whispered.

He noticed the looks everyone was giving them so he gently lowered the girl back on her feet. She gasped when she spotted her sister, "Yang!" and was pulled into a tight hug

"Did your sister just fall from the sky?" asked Blake.

Ruby looked up at the giant nevermore that still had something or rather someone hanging from its talons.

The heiress started to cry after she realised she had been abandoned by her partner. "How could you leave me?"

"I said jump."

"She's gonna fall," said Blake.

"She'll be fine," replied the reaper.

"She's falling," observed Ren.

All eyes turned on the knight, he groaned and finally extended his arms again to catch the white haired girl.

The impact knocked the air out of his lungs but he couldn't let them see it.

Weiss stared at her savior with wide eyes, "I believe the words you're looking for are, thank you," he said.

She frowned, "The words I'm looking for are, put me down!"

He smirked and obliged her request by dropping her, "You're welcome, Ice Queen."

"Great, the gang's all here," said yang.

Jaune turned his gaze back to the sky and observed the nevermore. Right now it was circling their little group, the predator waiting for the perfect opportunity to strike.

"We need to get out of here. everybody got their relic?" he asked.

"Oh, wait," quipped the reaper. She ran over to the pedestals but was oblivious to the fact that she had just singled herself out for the attack. The nevermore circled back and released a shower of feathers at her.

Jaune realised the situation and was about to rush to her rescue but the white haired girl beat him to it. She shielded them both with a wall of ice.

It was nice to see she at least cared about her partner, thought Jaune, until he heard her yelling at Ruby again. For some reason, though, the reaper seemed happier when she returned to the group. He didn't have time to wonder about their conversation. There were more pressing concerns on his mind.

"We're sitting ducks out here," said the knight.

"That thing won't be able to follow us in the forest," said the white haired girl.

"I'll draw its attention, you get to safety," he ordered.

"But-" the reaper attempted to protest but Jaune cut her off.

"Don't worry, I'll be fine. I'll circle back after I've lost it."

Before anyone could stop him he started running towards the northern cliffs.

* * *

Jaune led the winged beast into a thick fog. He had hoped he'd lose the creature in it but a look over his shoulder showed him otherwise. He pushed his body to its limits, way past the point of exhaustion, but his pursuer wasn't limited by the endurance of its muscles as it gracefully soared through the skies. With the cliff face approaching, time was running out, he needed to take care of his situation. He found himself running through some ruins and then realised a huge gorge stood between him and the cliffs. There were bridges leading to the other side but he'd be completely exposed if he used them.

"Enough is enough," he finally said after coming to a stop.

He took Ferrum bellum off his back and shifted it into a two-hander.

It was time to make a stand.

He could probably take that thing out in one hit but grimm that size were usually quite intelligent. That's why he needed it to get closer before he made his move.

The nevermore, however, had a different idea. It pulled up and released another shower of feathers. Jaune readied himself to deflect it but a few shots echoed in the distance and they were no more.

He spotted Pyrrha and Ruby not too far from his position. A trail of smoke leaving their rifles. His remaining classmates ran past them to his aid.

"I had the situation under control. You could've made out by now. "

"And let you have all the fun to yourself? Fat chance, mister," replied Nora.

His eyes met with Weiss who scoffed, "Don't look at me, Ruby's the one that insisted on going after you."

"Okay, you got a plan?" he asked the reaper.

"Mhm."

* * *

The nevermore landed on the central tower and let out a shriek but that didn't deter the future huntsmen. They began shooting at it from all directions but it appeared unphased by the assault as it searched for a target.

Blake stood on the bridge right under it. With a flap of its wings it dove at her. She jumped off the stone bridge with the nevermore in tow. For a moment there, the girl looked like a goner but she turned around and shot her weapon back towards the bridge. The blade impaled itself into the stone and with the sash she swung out of the nevermore's way.

Realising its mistake the grimm tried to pull up but received two heavy strikes from Nora and Yang. In its daze it flew right into another tower.

Before it could recover a shower of bullets hit it. It spotted Ren and was about to engage but taking off proved impossible as its tail and legs had been frozen in place, courtesy of Weiss.

Pyrrha took a knee with Milo in rifle form. She fired at the bird, aiming for its eyes, but she was merely the distraction.

Ruby dashed past her at an incredible speed with her scythe aimed at the nevermore's exposed neck.

The perfect conclusion to a perfect plan. But no plan survives first contact and a cornered animal becomes extremely unpredictable.

The nevermore flapped its massive wings which created a gust that blew the reaper right off the bridge.

Without a moment to spare Jaune jumped after her. He caught her mid fall, swung around and managed to fling the reaper onto a different bridge. His own landing strategy eluded him as he barely even managed to land feet first at the bottom of the canyon.

The fall had taken a huge bite out of his aura but it didn't matter, the nevermore was up there and he was down here. He needed to get back in to the fight.

The winged grimm let out another horrifying shriek. It was beyond angry. It broke free from its icy shackles and was already searching for its next victim.

He had lured it here to spare his friends.

It was his problem to solve.

Jaune used his semblance to light up his aura. The brilliant glow emanating from the otherwise pitch black gorge immediately caught its eye.

The grip on his sword tightened, "Come here."

It dove at him but he didn't budge.

Time seemed to slow, as the grimm reached the point of no return.

He swung his sword and channeled his soul into the very air it displaced. The motion created a bright arc of pure aura that cut deep into the grimm's body.

It fell to the ground and slid several meters across the gravel until finally stopping at Jaune's feet. He observed his handiwork.

"Technically, still counts as one strike," he remarked and headed for the cliff wall, "Time to get out of here."

He made the mistake of turning his back to his opponent.

He sensed the grimm behind him move, he felt a breeze whisk past him and when he turned around he saw Ruby Rose standing on the nevermore's back. The blade of her scythe was wedged between its beak and she was holding back its entire weight from attacking him. A pull of the trigger later and the top half of the bird's head flew off.

"Wow," was all he could say as he was left awed by the sight.

* * *

"Jaune Arc, Lie Ren, Pyrrha Nikos, Nora Valkyrie. The four of you retrieved the white rook pieces. From this day forward, you will work together as Team JNPR."

"Led by... Jaune Arc!" announced their headmaster.

He felt his chest swell up with pride.

"Congratulations, young man."

"I won't let you down, sir."

He received a strong shoulder bump from a smiling Pyrrha. They returned to their spots and watched the last quartet of warriors take the stage.

"And finally, Blake Belladonna, Ruby Rose, Weiss Schnee, Yang Xiao Long. The four of you retrieved the white knight pieces. From this day forward, you will work together as Team RWBY. Led by... Ruby Rose!"

He clapped for his fellow team leader until he noticed the look on the heiress' face and burst into laughter.


	4. Chapter 4

**DISCLAIMER: This is a work of fan fiction using characters from the world of "RWBY", which is owned by Rooster Teeth. All the characters in this story are created and owned by Rooster Teeth and I do not claim any ownership over them or the world of Remnant. I am not profiting financially from the creation and publication of this story. Please support the official release.**

* * *

Beep...beep...beep

He slammed his palm on the alarm clock.

It was a brand new day and not just any day, the beginning of classes and for the first time in his life he was genuinely excited for them. His teammates were still sleeping and he wanted to give them a proper start to the day. After a quick shower he rushed over to the kitchen to brew a fresh batch of coffee. None of that watered down machine stuff. He prepped a moka pot and placed it on the stove. While it was heating up it gave him time to catch up on recent events.

 _White Fang attacks… rising dust prices… Vytal festival to be hosted by the kingdom of Vale…_

Nothing worth mentioning or at least nothing new, he put away his scroll when he heard the bubbling sound. He poured 4 cups for his entire team and wondered if he should've made it for Ruby and her teammates as well. They lived just cross the hall, it would be the neighbourly thing to do, but he'd need a bigger pot to cook for 8.

"Gotta start a shopping list."

Ren and Pyrrha were already up when he returned with Nora stirring in her bed. She practically jumped when the unmistakable aroma hit her nose. The face she made after taking just one sip was priceless. Pyrrha and Ren were better at hiding their reactions but he understood them. It was a stronger taste than what they were used to. But it was one that strongly reminded him of home.

While the others were tending to their own morning rituals Jaune decided to use the time to unpack. Other than his clothes and school supplies the only personal item he brought with him was a framed photo of his family. He placed it on one of the desks claiming it as his own.

The school forge was accessible 24/7 and he had been informed it was well stocked but he still had his own whetstones and some protective oil for his weapons. Those had a metallic odor to them so he left them in the bag.

Finally it was time to put on his school uniform. Checking himself in the mirror he had to admit it suited him. He tried playing around with his hair a little bit but found that the natural look was the way to go. The girls took a bit longer to get ready as they opted to change in the bathroom. Privacy in a co-ed dorm room was going to be an issue.

He added a room divider to his shopping list.

"How do I look?" asked Ren.

"Honestly, like you're with the Yakuza."

"...I guess I am due for a haircut."

"I meant it as a compliment."

"Oh... thank you."

There was a ruckus in the hallway just when everyone was ready. Their neighbours were in a rush to get to class. A look at his own scroll explained team RWBY's panic.

* * *

Professor Peter Port had a way with words. He possessed the uncanny ability to draw one into his lecture and then lose his own train of thoughts. Before you knew it, you're taking notes on a hunting trip he took 20 years ago. This was supposed to be grimm anatomy, not history or whatever that qualified as.

After the third storytime he gave up on taking any of his own notes. Pyrrha had been writing down everything so he could always ask her for those. Although he did spot large scribbled over areas in her notebook.

"A true Huntsman must be honorable!"

"A true Huntsman must be dependable!"

"A true Huntsman must be strategic, well-educated, and wise!"

"So, who among you believes themselves to be the embodiment of these traits?"

Weiss' hand shot up in response.

He was about to raise his own but the professor had already decided on his volunteer.

* * *

The professor unleashed the heiress' opponent, a mean looking boarbatusk. Her teammates cheered for her but it visibly annoyed her. After 2 failed attacks, the second of which separated her from her weapon, she lashed out at Ruby after the girl tried to help.

That wasn't okay.

She could've finished off that grimm with a single thrust.

Up its snout, into the brain.

Sure, it sounded nasty, but any grimm goop on her weapon would've evaporated along with the rest of it. Her own inadequacy didn't give her the right to snap at her team leader.

She managed to pull off a victory on the third attempt after falling back on her semblance to block its charge.

If that was the embodiment of a true huntsman then the world was doomed.

* * *

After class he went after the heiress. He wanted to give her a piece of his mind but just managed to catch the last bit of the latest outburst at her leader.

"Ozpin made a mistake," with that she stormed off.

"Ice queen giving you a hard time?" he asked the reaper.

"What if she's right? What if he did make a mistake."

"Well... Ruby is spelled with a U, so there's that."

"You're not helping."

"Sorry… look it's only been one day, give it time. I'm sure Ozpin knew what he was doing when he formed the teams."

She wasn't convinced.

He grabbed her by the shoulders and looked her deep in the eyes, "Look, you proved that you have what it takes to be a leader. That plan of yours, for the nevermore, that was incredible and Ozpin saw that."

She blushed at the praise.

"But you're not just a leader on the battlefield, you're a leader in class and in the mess hall and you have to set an example for your teammates. You have to give them a reason to follow you."

"That, whoa, you're right. I need to get to the library before it closes. Thanks, Jaune!" she ran off leaving behind a trail of rose petals.

When the knight turned around he was met with the headmaster collected gaze.

"A rather crude iteration of my own words but you managed to give miss Rose something to think about. Good job!"

"Thank you, sir… wait, what do you mean?"

"She's not the first student to realise the weight of the badge. I remember a young Roland Arc who came to me convinced he wasn't cut out to be team leader."

"My father?"

"I'm delighted to hear he took what I told him to heart and passed it on to his own offspring."

"So, you wanted to give me a pep talk?"

"No, mister Arc, I need your help on a different matter. Please follow me."

* * *

The walk was silent and the tension so thick you could cut it with a knife. Ozpin took him to his office and offered him a seat in front of his desk together with a steaming cup of coffee.

He sat behind the desk with his own mug and eyed him carefully.

"I've watched the footage of your initiation several times," he finally said, "Some of your methods were unorthodox but you managed to get your teammates safely through the Emerald forest."

"...Am I in trouble?"

He hadn't been summoned for a couple of compliments. He wanted to know what this was really about.

"No, mister Arc, I would like you to tell me what it is that I'm seeing here," he played the surveillance footage from the previous day. It was right after he had taken out the pack of beowolves. It showed him kneeling next to the wolf and ended with Pyrrha's arrival.

"Would you believe me it was destiny that Pyrrha and I met?"

Ozpin wasn't amused, "You know very well that isn't what I was referring to."

He replied with a sigh, "It's my semblance. I used it to activate the wolf's aura and speed up its healing process."

"That's what I thought. A remarkable ability you have there. I've seen my fair share of semblances but nothing like yours. Tell me," Ozpin leaned in closer, "what exactly is the extent of your abilities?"

The knight could smell there was some hidden agenda and he didn't like being kept in the dark.

"What's this about?"

The headmaster put down his mug and leaned back in his chair.

"Tell me, mr. Arc, what's your favourite fairytale?"

Well this conversation just made a complete one-eighty.

"Don't have one, I grew up listening to my grandfather's adventures as a huntsman."

"But surely you know some fairytales."

"I guess."

"The Knight and the Dragon?"

"More or less."

"How about the Paladin of Charlemagne?"

"Sure."

"Do you know the Story of the Seasons?"

"Yeah, one of my sisters really likes that one, I must've read it a dozen times to her."

"What if I told you that one was true."

The knight took a sip of his coffee.

He observed Ozpin's face but his expression remained unchanged.

"Are you serious?"

He quietly sipped his drink as he took in all this new information. It was surreal, a fairytale, a lie, but the longer he listened the more he was convinced.

Magic was real

These maidens could wield it

The power was passed on after they died

The fall maiden had been attacked and part of her power stolen.

"The fate of Remnant might very well lie in your hands."

His cup was empty.

He slowly looked up to his headmaster, "Can you prove any of this?"

"No, not at this moment. You'll have to take my word for it."

He put the cup down.

"Say I believe you… Amber, where is she?"

* * *

The elevator took them lower than he thought possible. To a basement he didn't know existed.

Somewhere beneath Beacon in a vast dark hall he saw a set of pods connected via cables to a contraption hanging from the ceiling. One of the pods was housing a young brunette with olive skin. She had a horrible scar on her face but that was just a cosmetic issue. Her real problems weren't visible to the naked eye. He waved a hand over her form to feel for her aura. It didn't take a huntsman to tell there was something seriously wrong with it.

Ozpin had said part of her powers had been stolen. What did this progress look like and how was it connected to her aura?

But perhaps the bigger question was, what could he do for this girl other than grant her an end to her suffering?

"Will you help her?"

"I don't know… I think this is beyond aura."

"Her attacker severed her spinal cord at Th10 it wasn't lethal but she went into shock afterwards. It resulted in acute kidney failure and ischemic damage to her other organ systems. We've managed to stabilise her but right now the machine you see before you is the only thing keeping her alive."

The most he had ever done was close up a few superficial wounds but this… if the girl's aura hasn't healed her after all this time what chance did he have.

"I'll try."

Ozpin nodded and brought the pod into a horizontal position. Jaune hovered his hands over the girl and focused. He could feel his semblance resonate with what remained of Amber's aura. It lit up in a beautiful orange color.

He lost all track of time as he descended deeper and deeper into a trance. His only anchor to reality, the indicator of the time passed, was his own steadily depleting aura reserve.

It was hours later that the glow finally faded and he opened his eyes.

The aura had done its job.

But not the way he had hoped for. It had repaired the organs, replacing the necrotic and inflamed regions with scar tissue, Wallerian degeneration took care of her severed nerves and as for her coma, that persisted.

She hadn't woken up and even if she did there was no way she'd ever walk again. Maybe if the injuries had been fresh but now...

"I can't do it. I'm sorry."

Ozpin sighed, "I thought as much. Thank you for trying."

He studied the headmaster's expression, "You knew this would happen."

He didn't reply.

"What exactly were you hoping for?"

The professor wiped his eye and smiled, "A miracle."

* * *

"I hope you can keep what you've learned today a secret."

How could he?

The very foundation of his beliefs had just been shaken.

"Of course, sir."

He left the professor and made his way towards the dormitories.

It was late. He dreaded the idea of sleep knowing full well that he wouldn't get any. Not when he could see Amber's face every time he closed his eyes. Instead, he went to the kitchen and cooked another round of coffee.

The day had been lost and he hadn't prepared for tomorrow's classes yet. It would be a long night.

He didn't expect the heiress to join him.

"Burning the midnight oil, Princess?"

"No, just… trying to do something nice for my leader," replied Weiss, "Do you have extra?"

He looked at his moka pot and poured her a cup. She added milk and 5 lumps of sugar to it before leaving.

Was that just…

...

He shook his head smiling.

"Maybe there is such a thing."


	5. Chapter 5

**DISCLAIMER: This is a work of fan fiction using characters from the world of "RWBY", which is owned by Rooster Teeth. All the characters in this story are created and owned by Rooster Teeth and I do not claim any ownership over them or the world of Remnant. I am not profiting financially from the creation and publication of this story. Please support the official release.**

* * *

 _Three weeks later_

The two knights circled each other in the arena. One clad in grey armor, the other only a knight in conviction and training. The fight had been going on for less than 2 minutes but they were already out of breath.

Cardin's plate armor was impervious to his sword. He had managed to land a few well aimed thrusts into the exposed joint areas but his opponent had gotten wise to his antics.

Jaune on the other hand had been dodging Cardin's blows for the greater part of the match. He had attempted to block a strike but it had sent his shield flying. He regretted leaving his other sword back on the stands. It would've come in handy.

The matchup was less than optimal for both parties involved. Blunt weapons were good at dealing with heavy armor and swords worked better against light armor. The fight would've been a lot more evenly matched if their weapons were switched. He knew his way around the flail and he was sure a mace was far more forgiving. For a moment he considered making Cardin the offer but quickly scrapped the idea.

If being a huntsman were easy, anyone would do it. It's moments like these, with your back pressed against the wall, that you separate the wheat from the chaff..

The mace wielder was watching him carefully and then smirked. It seemed he had already come up with a plan of his own.

He'd have to be careful.

"It's been fun, Jauney boy, but now comes the part where you lose."

Cardin slammed his mace on the ground and sent an explosion his way. He jumped out of the way and lunged at his opponent. The point of his sword skid off the grey armor. He followed up with a swing at the ginger's head but he dodged it.

Then he noticed the opening.

He thrust Crocea at Cardin's exposed shoulder joint but the blade was caught in the flanges of his mace. The ginger hit him with a malicious grin and with a twirl of his weapon he pulled the sword out of his hand.

"What did I tell you-"

He was cut off by a fist to the temple. Before he could recover Jaune followed up with two more punches and a stomp to the back of his knee. He used the falling ginger's momentum and slammed his elbow into Cardin's eye socket.

He fell flat on his back and Jaune jumped right on top of him. He started punching his face until he let go of the mace and brought his hands up to shield himself. He grabbed him by his armor, pulled him off the floor and slammed him back down. That knocked the wind right out of his lungs.

Jaune stood up and picked up Cardin's mace. He placed one foot on his opponent's chest and brought the weapon high up over his head. Before he could act the lights turned on and professor Goodwitch signaled the end of the match.

He got off his opponent and helped him up.

"You good?" Jaune asked.

"I'll, live," Cardin replied holding his head.

"Nice work disarming me, wasn't expecting that one."

"Thanks, but it doesn't matter, I still lost."

"Take my advice and don't talk the next time you gain the advantage."

"Yeah, I'll try to remember that one."

"Please return to your seats so we can proceed with class," interrupted professor Goodwitch.

* * *

"Jaune!"

He turned around at his partner's call and let her catch up. He had taken the seat closest to the exit with a reason. He had dashed out the moment the bell rang in order to avoid his classmates.

"Are you joining us for lunch today?" Pyrrha asked.

"I don't think I can make."

"Oh… It's just that, it's been a while since the team has eaten together. Nora misses her fearless leader and Ren's been having some difficulty keeping her in line."

Lunch was a time consuming luxury. He had tried to make it work but found that it was more efficient to just skip it altogether.

"Sorry, but I'll probably just grab something from the vending machine."

"A sandwich isn't a replacement for a balanced meal."

"Look… I just don't have time, okay?" he replied impatiently.

Her haze softened, "You've been acting differently these last few weeks. If you're having troubles with your studies, I'm sure we can help you... or Is there something else that's bothering you? "

He remained silent.

"I'm your partner, Jaune, you can tell me anything."

"I… I've been busy."

"Well, if you find time in your schedule, you know where to find us," with that the champion walked right past him.

He wanted to call after her but a beep from his scroll informed him that he was already running late.

* * *

It had been his routine these last couple of weeks.

 _Wake up_

 _Go for a jog_

 _Hit the shower_

 _Coffee and breakfast_

 _Go to classes_

 _Go to library_

 _Quick lunch_

 _Back to the library_

 _Hit the gym_

 _Quick Snack_

 _Hit the shower_

 _Hit the bed_

The day was just too short to add "Socialise" to it.

It was never about falling behind in classes, it was more along the line of squeezing every second out of the day. He went over his notes for this week's classes and prepared for tomorrow's lecture. Whatever time he had left he spent reading through medical books. It allowed him to get a better understanding on how the human body healed itself. A fact that he found interesting was that a human nerve apparently regenerated at a speed of 1 mm per day. Maybe there was hope for Amber.

Another option for the girl would be below the waist prosthetics. He wondered if prosthetics of such calibre even existed. Browsing the CCT he came across a case study titled "The Tin Man". It was about a person that had lost 75% of his body and was put together using Atlas tech. The article was completely anonymous so there was no way of tracking down the patient but he could still present his findings to the headmaster.

Overall, he knew the damage to the maiden's body was secondary. The greater issue was the persistent coma.

His scroll beeped and he cleaned his desk to head to the gym.

Another day without progress.

He already felt sorry for the punching bag he'll went his frustration on.

* * *

He stood in the hall with his gym bag slung over his shoulder and sighed. There were noises coming from behind the door. His team was still awake. He'd have to wait them out.

"Hey, Jaune! Did you lock yourself out of the room again?"

He turned to see Ruby in her pajamas.

He searched his pockets and pulled out his scroll, "Nope, got it."

"You know your team's been missing you, where have you been lately?"

Maybe it was her smile, maybe it was the innocent tone of her voice or maybe it was just the sheer weight of the reality of things pressing down on him but he needed somebody to talk to.

"Something's come up and... I don't know anymore. I wanted to become a huntsman to help people and I got my chance but... I couldn't do it."

He sat back against the wall and let his body slide to the floor.

"I'm a failure."

"Nope!"

"Nope?"

"Nope!

"But what if?"

"Nope!"

"You know you're not the easiest person to talk to about these things."

"Nope!" She sat down right next to him, "We're team leaders, Jaune. It's not just about us anymore. We've got people depending on us and if we fail we'll drag them down with us. You told me I have to set an example for my teammates, well, what kind of an example would a failure make?"

"A bad one?"

"Exactly"

"Right, and that's why I've been training and studying. I've been looking for ways to improve. I need to be ready the next time."

"What about your team?" asked the reaper.

"Well... I think they study in our room… I've seen Nora's gym shorts on the floor so I guess she probably trains on her own. Ren and Pyrrha, I don't know."

"But you're their leader."

"Yeah, but I'm sure they don't need me to train them."

She tilted her head, "Did you ask them?"

"They made it into Beacon, they're capable fighters on their own, they don't need my help."

"But you didn't ask them."

He looked at his fellow leader who blinked waiting for his response.

"Your teammates deserve the best leader they can get and I for one believe that can be you, Jaune."

She stood up and went back to her own room, "Good night," she wished before the door closed.

They do deserve the best leader they can get but… he hasn't been acting like a leader.

In his desperate attempt to improve himself he had driven a wedge between him and his teammates. He was so afraid of failing again he never even noticed it happenimg. He wondered what he would've done if it had been one of his teammates or any of his other friends in that pod.

Was there even anything _to_ be done…

Ozpin had urged him to try, he never expected him to succeed…

He _had_ failed but… it wasn't his fault.

He closed his eyes and took a deep breath.

"I'm sorry, Amber," he whispered and her image slowly faded from his mind.

There were wounds an aura couldn't heal and neither could his semblance. He had to accept that, but maybe there's something else Jaune Arc can still heal tonight.

* * *

He entered team JNPR's room and all gazes immediately fell on him.

"I'm sorry," their expressions softened, "I was afraid of messing up and letting you down as team leader. I tried keeping myself busy, to take my mind off things, but it didn't help. I was so stressed I neglected the people I was trying to protect in the first place... you guys. You deserve better."

Nora started bouncing on her bed in cheer. Ren gave a nod of approval. Pyrrha smiled softly, "Well, I think we can forgive you. But next time, come to us when you're in doubts. It's a lot better to talk about your problems than closing yourself off."

"Yeah, you're right."

"What was it about?" asked Ren.

"I… I don't even know anymore," he lied, "probably wasn't that important to begin with."

He shrugged hoping they would drop the matter. It seemed to work.

"There's one more thing, I jog each morning at 6.30. Anyone interested in joining me?"

"That sounds grand," Pyrrha replied.

"Yeah and later, Ren can make us all pancakes," cheered Nora.

"Do I get a say in it?" asked the ninja.

He wasn't expecting that level of enthusiasm but he was glad. After all, he had 3 weeks worth of bonding to make up for.

"Then I guess we should probably get some shut eye," he said.

He took off his hoodie and T-shirt but kept his white tank top and replaced his jeans with light blue pajama pants. He entered the bathroom to brush his teeth.

Pyrrha joined him a few minutes later with the same idea. He had barely even recognised the champion without her signature ponytail. With her long hair flowing down the length of her back. She was also dressed for bed wearing black pajama shorts and a red tank top.

"Wha-bou-u?"

"I'm sorry?"

Jaune spit the foam before repeating the question, "Earlier today, you said Nora and Ren missed me. What about you?"

"Well I… I'm certainly happy about your return."

He noticed the light blush on her cheeks and chuckled in response.

"Yeah, I missed you too, Pyrrha," he replied with a wink and left the champion to herself.


	6. Chapter 6

**DISCLAIMER: This is a work of fan fiction using characters from the world of "RWBY", which is owned by Rooster Teeth. All the characters in this story are created and owned by Rooster Teeth and I do not claim any ownership over them or the world of Remnant. I am not profiting financially from the creation and publication of this story. Please support the official release.**

* * *

He had just lost his appetite. While the others were caught up with Nora's retelling of her dream his attention was drawn elsewhere.

"Ow, it hurts!"

He clenched the knife in his hands. The metal handle dug into his skin but he didn't even notice the pain.

"She's been having this recurring dream for nearly a month now," explained Ren.

"Jaune, is everything alright?" asked Pyrrha.

She followed his gaze and saw what was bothering him. Cardin and his goons were picking on their classmate.

"Somebody needs to do something about that," commented the knight.

"I know," Nora declared with a smile, "we'll break his legs!"

A tempting idea, he had to admit, but not the solution he was hoping for.

After she finally freed her ear from Cardin's grip Velvet left the cafeteria in tears.

"Atrocious, I can't stand people like that," commented Pyrrha.

"You're not the only one," said Blake peering over her book.

"It must be hard to be a faunus," added Yang.

The members of team CRDL were their classmates. They were representatives of Beacon's first year students and the next generation of huntsmen. Any poor behaviour they displayed threw a bad light on them as well.

Something needed to be done.

Telling a professor seemed like the obvious choice but this wasn't kindergarten. They were all adults here and they needed to take care of their own problems.

Jaune played with his mashed potatoes trying to come up with an idea when a light bulb went off.

This was going to be good.

* * *

 _The next day_

"Cardin Winchester," called professor Goodwitch.

The mace wielder took the stage with a confident stride. He eyed the stands with a toothy grin searching for an opponent.

"Any volunteers?" he asked.

The ginger haired teen towered over all his classmates and relied on brute strength to win his fights.

In truth, he wasn't looking for a fighter, he was looking for a victim.

"As a matter of fact," replied Glynda.

The door opened and the visitor ducked under the frame to enter. Everyone stared at the giant taking the stage. The blood visibly left Cardin's face as he was forced to look up to meet his opponent's eyes.

"Mister Daichi has volunteered to demonstrate the skills a second year huntsman-in-training possesses," explained the professor.

Jaune struggled to hold back his laughter.

* * *

 _Previous evening, Beacon's gym_

"Hey, you need a spot?"

Yatsuhashi finished his set with a grunt and sat up.

"I'm good," he replied. He took a towel to wipe the sweat off his forehead.

"Warming up?" the knight asked eyeing the weights. It was well above his one rep max.

He responded with a light chuckle, "One more set and I'm done, actually."

"So I was wondering, you're teammates with Velvet, right?"

The giant went silent as he stared at the knight.

"You don't need my permission if you want to court her."

"What? No, it's not that."

He explained the situation and by the end the giant was huffing with anger. It took some effort but he managed to hold him back until he calmed down. The knight let him in on his plan and Yatsuhashi was immediately on board with it. All that was left now was to call in his favor with professor Ozpin.

* * *

"Good luck?" wished Cardin gripping his mace with both hands.

"I am not the one who'll be needing it."

Yatsuhashi reached behind him to draw his own weapon, a massive orange blade with a wicked gut hook ground into the spine.

"Begin!"

Cardin opened the match by slamming his mace against his opponent's head.

Yatsuhashi didn't even blink at the attack. A glance at the screen showed the aura meter hadn't registered a drop.

The mace wielder pulled back his weapon and gulped.

The giant reached out and picked up his opponent by the collar. He flung him to the other side of the room like a toy.

Cardin slid across the tiles before finally coming to a stop. He sat up and shook off the daze. He spotted his weapon and reached out to grab it but his opponent foiled the reunion by kicking it out of his reach.

Yatsuhashi pressed Cardin down with a foot on his chest and pointed his sword right between the mace welder's eyes.

"If you EVER pick on Velvet again," he quickly jabbed Cardin with the tip. A single drop of blood formed at the point of contact and the match was instantly stopped.

"That's enough, mr. Daichi," declared professor Goodwitch.

Yatsuhashi stepped off his opponent and put away his weapon. He thanked everyone for their time before leaving.

"As you just witnessed, students, in moments of extreme stress a huntsman may lose the ability to engage his aura. Mr. Winchester, please take your seat."

"Yes, professor," he replied before returning to the stands with his head hung in shame.

The only thing that was missing now was some sort of quip about the ginger's performance issues.

"What's the matter, Cardin, couldn't get it up?" commented Yang.

His pale complexion did nothing to hide his embarrassment.

Perfect

* * *

Velvet's demeanor changed in the two weeks that followed. With team CRDL avoiding her in a wide arch she was a lot more at ease during class as well as outside of it. He also noticed the rest of her team joining her for lunch on occasion. It was hard to synchronise time tables when you're not in the same school year but he was glad to see the team was putting some effort into strengthening their bonds.

Her happiness drew a smile on his own face. He was glad he was able to help the bunny faunus.

Sadly, there was no one to help him face his own demons.

School field trips were a nice break from the stuffy classrooms but for the knight they proved a different challenge, all together. He had excused himself soon after the ship had taken flight and, in a race against time, made it to the observation deck before his body could betray him.

His arms were crossed in front of his chest, his stance, wide and firm, and his steel gaze unwavering as he took in the sight. There was only one thing going through his mind right now.

 _"Ok, skipped breakfast, took the medicine and drank grandma's special tea. Now, as long as I keep looking at the landscape… I might just survive this trip without-"_

"Hey, Jaune!"

He turned at the sound of Ruby's voice but immediately felt the wave of nausea coming from his stomach. He whipped his head back towards the window but that proved a mistake. The glassy saliva coated his mouth as his body prepared to purge his stomach contents.

He gripped at the rails tightly and took a few deep breaths to steady himself.

Thankfully, his willpower prevailed.

He felt a gentle hand on his back.

"You weren't kidding about your motion sickness."

"No," he replied without breaking his gaze from the tree crowns.

"I've got some salt crackers in my backpack, it might help settle your stomach."

"What, no cookies?" he asked with a smirk.

"Those are for me… Besides, I eat things other than cookies, you know."

"I know, I'm just trying to get my mind off the motion sickness."

"Oooh, in that case… umm… how'd you manage to convince professor Goodwitch to invite Yatsuhashi to class."

His heart skipped a beat, "...I don't know what you're talking about."

He was pretty sure the reaper was pouting but it couldn't affect him if he wasn't looking.

After a pause she sighed in defeat, "There's nothing wrong with doing a good deed."

"If you only do it for the praise it loses its meaning… I did what I did because it was the right thing to do. Not because I wanted people to know."

"It was still nice of you to help out Velvet."

"...Thanks."

She leaned on the rails with a smile of her own to share in the sight, "The forest is beautiful."

"Yeah," he replied.

"How do you think it works? I mean, how can a forest be locked in a season?"

"Magic?"

"Don't be silly, Jaune, there's no such thing as magic."

That had been common knowledge to him until just a few months ago but when someone opens your mind to the possibility you start noticing things. There were some phenomena that the world just took for granted without any real explanation.

The Forest of Forever Fall was one of such.

Could it have been a gift from a fall maiden? He couldn't help but wonder.

"Yeah... silly me."

The airship landed by the edge of the forest and once they were on the ground again Jaune could move without fear.

"Looks like we made it," said Ruby.

"And still not Vomit Boy," declared the knight.

Are you gonna be alright?" Ruby asked

"Yeah, thanks for the company."

"It was nothing, I like talking to you."

"Well, I appreciate it but we should probably get back to the group. I don't think we were supposed to be here and Goodwitch might throw a fit if she catches us."

* * *

"Yes, students, the forest of Forever Fall is indeed beautiful. But we are not here to sight-see. Professor Peach has asked all of you to collect samples from the trees deep inside this forest, and I'm here to make sure none of you die while doing so."

That was reassuring. Still he prefered the safety offered by his own weapons.

"Each of you is to gather one jar's worth of red sap. However, this forest is full of the creatures of Grimm, so be sure to stay by your teammates. We will rendezvous back here at 4 o'clock. Have fun!"

Team CRDL wandered off together. Their leader had been quiet ever since his humiliation in combat class.

A welcome change.

He wanted to find a nice spot to share with team RWBY but they were gone by the time he turned around. He lead his own team deep into the woods and found a nice clearing surrounded with the sap-containing tree species.

The first one he tapped left him with a rash on his skin and a runny nose. Thankfully, the reaction stopped there. He apologised to his teammates for his allergy but insisted on filling his own jar, watery eyes and all.

The nearby trees were soon drained but their total jar count remained at two as Nora kept resetting Ren's progress. The two headed out to find some more trees leaving the knight and the champion sitting side by side on a fallen trunk.

"That girl has a bottomless pit for a stomach," commented Jaune.

"Considering the amount of trash she puts in her body, I'm more surprised by how she manages to keep up her physique," replied Pyrrha.

"You think that…"

"What?"

"I mean, those two hang out all the time and they've been together for years. You think there's something more going on?"

"You believe them engaged in a romantic relationship."

"I meant more like an unspoken mutual attraction."

He noticed the blush on the champion's cheeks.

"Well, I for one think it's up to them to define the boundaries of their relationship."

"Sometimes people need a little push in the right direction."

He felt something brush against his fingers for just a moment. When he turned he caught Pyrrha pulling away her hand.

When he looked up she was already staring into the distance.

"Can I ask you something?"

"What do you want to know?"

"With your semblance you could've marked anyone... Why'd you choose me?"

"Jaune, this might be hard for you to believe but… I didn't exactly have many friends back at Sanctum."

"Better to have a few good friends than a lot of fake one," he said with a shrug.

"Even a few would've been good," she muttered.

He stared at her surprised by the statement.

After a pause she continued, "People talked to me but it was always just endless praise of my endeavors. After a while you realise just how empty those words are. When they looked at me they just saw a wall of achievements. To them I was always the champion, the icon, the prodigy… nobody ever tried to get to know the real me. Because of that I've been unable to form any kind of meaningful relationship in years," she turned to look him in the eyes, "You changed that, you broke my curse and for that I am eternally thankful."

He wrapped an arm around her waist and pulled her into a side hug.

"I don't remember any curses… I just thought this cute redhead was checking me out so I went over there to talk to her."

They shared a laugh, but neither was in any hurry to escape the embrace. After a while she leaned her head on his shoulder and they just sat there enjoying each other's company. A breeze graced them with a show of dancing autumn leaves and the moment seemed to last forever.

When their teammates returned Nora elbowed her partner with a knowing grin and when the time came, team JNPR made its way back to the rendezvous point.

What struck him as odd, though, was the cleared path in the otherwise undisturbed woods. It was as if something had moved aside the leaves in a very straight line. What he didn't notice, however, were the rose petals that lay between the leaf litter.


	7. Chapter 7

**DISCLAIMER: This is a work of fan fiction using characters from the world of "RWBY", which is owned by Rooster Teeth. All the characters in this story are created and owned by Rooster Teeth and I do not claim any ownership over them or the world of Remnant. I am not profiting financially from the creation and publication of this story. Please support the official release.**

* * *

It was the end of the semester and the members of team JNPR were enjoying a well deserved break. Midterms had gone well and with classes starting up again next week, they found themselves with more free time than they knew what to do with. None of them was in a hurry to dive back into the books, so when Jaune invited them to join him in the gym they all jumped at the chance.

After warmups and stretches it was Nora that wanted to turn the training session into a competition. He probably had twice her weight but pound for pound she left him in the dust. He managed to set a new personal best on the barbell squat, an achievement his bubbly teammate easily surpassed.

"Mama Valkyrie didn't raise no lightweight. Ren, 1000 pounds!" she demanded.

"Nora, this is dangerous," Pyrrha reasoned but her words fell on deaf ears.

Jaune and Ren added a plate on each side and secured them with safety clips. It was almost half a metric ton of steel and it looked scary as heck.

Nora grabbed a fistful of chalk and applied it generously to her hands and neck. He scanned the gym for a lifting belt but the ginger was already in position by the time he turned around.

He was on standby, ready to jump in if anything were to go wrong.

Nora descended with a sharp inhale.

What followed was a whole lot of screaming with very little squatting.

Her struggle reflected on her face turning it beet red. They showered her with encouragements but after a series of grunts the bubbly girl finally admitted defeat.

"A little help?" she asked with a shy smile.

Pyrrha flipped a switch on the wall which activated the gravity crystals in the floorboard. It allowed the male duo to almost effortlessly take the weight off Nora's shoulders. They helped their friend back on her feet but as soon as they let go she collapsed like a ragdoll.

Her hands latched onto her thighs, giving them a firm squeeze, "My legs, my legs! Ren… I can't feel my legs, anymore."

"You overdid it, Nora," he calmly stated and picked her up. Nora wrapped her arms around his neck, "Let's get you to the infirmary."

The ninja carried his partner out of the gym leaving their remaining teammates to put the equipment back in its place. A tedious task but one he enjoyed as long as he got to do it with Pyrrha.

"What do you want to do now?" the champion asked.

"Well, Ren promised he'd go a couple of round in the ring with me but I guess that's off the table."

"If you want I'm sure I could provide you with a challenge."

"Uhh…"

* * *

"Yield," whispered Pyrrha into his ear.

Her legs were hooked tightly around his midsection and one of her arms had wrapped itself around his neck. He could feel the blood pressure in his head rising with each breath. His brain struggled to come up with an escape plan in the face of its fleeting oxygen reserves.

Realising her teammate's plight, the champion loosened her hold but he tapped out to give her the win.

He gasped for air once he was free.

She wasn't kidding about the challenge.

They had gone 2 rounds in the octagon cage. He managed to catch Pyrrha in a half-nelson in the first round and thought the second one would go just as easily.

Underestimating his opponent became his undoing as Pyrrha took control of the match right off the bat and quickly got him into a corner. He tried taking the fight to the ground but she evaded his grasp and was immediately on top of him.

"Tie… breaker?" he asked between pants.

She tightened her ponytail with a playful smirk.

His arms were heavy and his lungs burned but this was a matter of honor. His tanktop didn't help as the wet fabric felt like a carpet draped over his shoulders. Pyrrha didn't look much better. Her sports bra was soaked and her skin glistened under the light of the reflectors. He followed a droplet of sweat as it made its way down her neck... past her clavicle... into her cleavage.

"Jaune?"

"Huh?"

"Are you ready?"

"Ready"

The moment the words left his mouth Pyrrha charged at him. He responded with a right hook but the champion ducked and grabbed hold of the back of his knees. A slam of her shoulder sent him to the matt with a heavy thud. She pressed down his arm in an attempt to make this a quick win but he had the strength advantage.

He threw her off and she rolled into a standing position. He lashed out to grab her legs but she kicked them out of his reach and slammed her forearm down on the back of his head. She was about to wrap her arm around his neck when he caught it.

With his own weight he flipped her over and pinned the champion underneath him. He held her by the wrists and Pyrrha had her legs locked around his midsection. They stared at each other both panting.

The champion was trapped and if he played his cards right victory would be his.

He leaned in closer with a smirk on his face.

She was just inches away.

How easy it would to just close the distance and…

He quickly pulled back realising his train of thoughts. It only now dawned on him how compromising their current position looked. He was just glad they were alone. He didn't want to start any false rumors.

Pyrrha started struggling against his grip and caught him off guard with a sudden pull forward. In that moment the champion brought one of her legs over his shoulder and hooke her feet together in a triangle choke.

Jaune felt the champion's toned stomach against his cheek and tried to wiggle free but it only drew giggles from his opponent's lips as his stubble scratched against her soft skin.

"Jaune, stop that," she whined, "It's over."

Maybe he could've tickled his way out but he had to much respect for his partner to resort to such a tactic. Pyrrha had bested him fair and square.

Two taps on her forearm and she let go. When he pulled away he felt the lingering touch of her skin on his cheek.

"Congratulations."

* * *

He needed an ice cold shower to clear his head. On their way back to their room they ran into Ren pushing a grinning Nora on a wheelchair. His heart skipped a beat at the sight but before he could ask she assured him everything was alright. The nurse said it was just fatigue and guaranteed she'd be better after a good night's sleep and a huge stack of pancakes.

"I still don't remember her saying that second part," commented Ren.

"Nope, I'm pretty sure I heard her, now onward! To the kitchen!"

The ninja obliged with a sigh.

He found it strange how Nora didn't seem at all bothered by her condition. Probably had something to do with the fact that she had Ren to take care of her. Pancakes did sound nice right about now but… he didn't want to intrude.

"How about the two of us head out for a bite. I know a place," the knight suggested.

"Gladly"

After dropping off their training gear he led them to the garages where she was introduced to his mistress.

"Pyrrha, Llamrei. Llamrei, Pyrrha."

"You never mentioned you owned a motorcycle."

"What, you think I only ride on ursai?"

He passed her a spare helmet before mounting his bike and firing her up. She sat down behind him and wrapped her arms firmly around his abdomen.

"I see you remember your lessons."

"It was a memorable experience," she replied tightening the embrace.

The night road was empty and they reached the city of Vale in no time. He drove them to the commercial district. There were a number of restaurants spread across the waterfront but Jaune already had his mind set. He grabbed Pyrrha's hand and guided her through a series of alleyways.

With all the backtracking it must've been obvious he had no idea where they were going. Pyrrha was beginning to feel worried but eventually their destination came into view.

"Kremmydi's," the knight announced, "best Gyros in Vale… actually, it's the only gyros in Vale. I wanted to surprise you with a piece of home."

"Well, I certainly wasn't expecting it, thank you."

The place didn't exactly have a lot of customers and with their orders in hand the two returned to the riverside. There they found an empty bench where they could eat in the other's company.

"So... how's your… sandwich with fries?" Jaune asked to break the silence.

"To be honest, I've never been the greatest fan of it."

"I should've asked," he replied, his heart sinking..

"No, no, it's fine, sorry, I'm sure you went through a lot of trouble. The least I can-"

"It's okay, Pyrrha. You don't have to feel bad about it. Actually, it tastes exactly how I imagined it would."

He noticed there was a smudge of sauce at the edge of her lips. Pyrrha brought up her hand and slowly wiped it off with her thumb… then licked it.

Jaune tore away his gaze before she caught him.

"So… Vytal festival… are we in?" he asked in a desperate attempt to stop his train of thoughts.

"Of course, it's something I've been looking forward to."

"Me too, I can't wait to wipe the floor with some snobs from Atlas."

"It's not just about the tournament, you know, events like that draw in people from all corners of Remnant. It's a melting pot of cultures."

"Oh yeah, that's right, you've had your fair share of tournaments. You can tell us what to expect."

"Mmm, not really, a combat school level tournament features only singles. The Vytal festival, however, is made up of several stages. It begins with whole teams, then duals, and it's only the top 8 combatants that face off against one another in singles."

"Second part sounds like it was made for us."

"Perhaps, but Ren and Nora also perform excellently together in the ring."

"We could take them."

"You can certainly hold your own against other melee opponents but without an effective ranged weapon you'll face some adversity in a professional match."

"Hey, that's on Goodwitch, it's not my fault she keeps pitting me against the likes of team CRDL."

"Then there's the matter of your hand-to-hand skills…"

He shot his partner with a glare, "If I recall correctly, I beat you, didn't I?"

"Well…"

"What?"

"I might've gone easy on you in the first round, sorry."

He chuckled, "I should've known… by the way, I went easy on you in the second two."

She laughed at his statement, "Oh, is that so?"

"I didn't want you to feel bad," he said with a dorky smile, "Sweat was just part of the show."

"Mhm, you were very convincing."

They shared a laugh before turning their gaze back to towards the water.

He crumpled up the empty wrapper and wiped his mouth. It was far from a 5 star meal but it managed to fill his stomach. He let out a sigh and allowed his body to slump against the bench, "We've got a tough semester ahead of us…"

He felt hand on his thigh and he looked over to his partner. She had a reassuring smile, "I'm sure it won't be a problem with the help of our fearless leader."

He returned the smile but the moment their eyes met he found himself unable to look away. The memory of their spar resurfaced together with the thoughts he had halted so abruptly.

If he had leaned in, would she have resisted?

His hand moved on its own, slowly finding its way cupping the champion's cheek. He could feel her warmth against his skin. A light blush appeared on her cheeks and her lips parted ever so slightly. In the half-lidded gaze he caught her eyes darting down to his lips.

He leaned in closer, just an inch, and observed her response.

She mirrored the move.

His heart was going crazy and he suddenly became very aware of the pungent aroma rising from his guts.

There had been onions in his gyros.

Why did he have to eat onions?

Maybe if he had some gum in his pocket...

But he couldn't back away now.

What would Pyrrha think?

What kind of message would that send across?

He inched in closer and her eyes closed.

Maybe she won't mind, he thought.

 _Flash_

The moment was interrupted. They both turned to the source and spotted a mob armed with cameras racing to their position.

 _Ms. Nikos, how are you finding Beacon?_

 _Will you be taking part in the Vytal tournament?_

 _Are you on a date with this man?_

 _What are you eating?_

 _What is your relationship to him?_

The shower of questions overwhelmed him as all manner of recording devices filled his field of vision. The series of flashes left him stunned but after a couple of minutes he realised what was happening. He reached into his pocket to find his scroll. He started punching in his location but when his gaze turned to Pyrrha he stopped. She was smiling and answering the questions in a very polite manner.

She remained calm throughout the ordeal, somehow managing to give the reporters just enough to satisfy their curiosity. It seemed like they were trying to provoke an emotional response with some insinuations of an intimate relationship between them but she simply introduced him as her dear friend.

He guessed this wasn't the first time she had found herself in such an ambush.

Better not cause an incident, he reasoned and put his scroll away.

Pyrrha definitely had these vultures under control but the challenge of regaining their privacy remained. He observed the group for any signs of weakness. The reporters were focused on his partner, hanging on her every word, except for one small teen. He saw him pull back his tape recorder and answer a call. Jaune focused his senses to make out what he was saying.

 _"But I've got Nikos… you're kidding me… I'm on it."_

He snuck away from the crowd and ran off. The knight raised a hand that silenced the remaining journalists.

"Hey, I don't want to be a bother but your friend over there just left," he said pointing his finger, "I don't know what it's about buuut… if he ditched an interview with the great Pyrrha Nikos for it…" he shrugged.

The reporters exchanged confused looks and dispersed in seconds.

A sigh drew his attention to his partner, "I'm sorry for that."

"Don't sweat it, you handled it like a pro."

A silence fell between the two warriors. He took a sharp breath of air to try and restart their conversation but Pyrrha stopped him.

"Jaune"

He swallowed the lump in the back of his throat, "Yes?" he asked.

"Is… are we on a date?"

There was a pregnant pause as his thoughts raced all over the place.

The two had grown closer throughout the duration of the semester. It was hard not to notice the beautiful redhead he shared a room with. Privacy was an issue and he had found himself stealing glances of her scantily dressed body whenever she neglected to use the room divider to protect her modesty. He'd be a fool if he didn't think she was attractive. But that wasn't the question.

"No"

Pyrrha's fingers slowly clenched into a fist.

"I think you deserve better than a lousy sandwich and a conversation about school for a date," he explained with an honest smile.

She slowly turned to him.

"I would treat you to a proper date, that is... if you'd want to…"

A blush tinted her cheeks in a familiar pink.

He had come so far already, he couldn't chicken out now.

All it took was confidence, right?

"Pyrrha?"

"Yes, Jaune?"

"Would you like to… catch a movie sometime… just the two of us? Maybe grab something to eat afterwards… something other than this," he added pointing at his empty wrapper.

"I would love to."

* * *

The next morning the knight discovered a number of missed calls on his phone. They were all from his sisters. It was too early to return them so he headed to the kitchen where he discovered the reason for the sudden increase in attention. It seemed his little pseudo-date had made it into the newspaper. Fortunately, it was just a small article with a single picture

From the angle you couldn't exactly tell the distance between their faces but he understood how one could make the assumption that they were kissing. Part of him cursed the photographer with the hair-trigger but the other part was glad for the interruption. He wouldn't want bad breath to be the constant reminder of his first kiss with Pyrrha..

First kiss…

He was getting ahead of himself.

But the fact remained, she had said yes. Everything that had happened afterwards was blur. He couldn't even remember how they got back to their room. All he could think about was how Pyrrha had said yes.

To a date

Well technically it was the idea of a date. There hadn't been any talk about a time or place but he had manned up and asked the question and that was the hard part.

Seems dad's advice had held up.

There was still one thing plaguing his mind. He scrolled up the news articles until he reached the headline. It was a story about a massive dust heist perpetrated by the White Fang. A heist that was thwarted by the Vale's Finest in association with some familiar-looking huntresses in training.


	8. Chapter 8

**DISCLAIMER: This is a work of fan fiction using characters from the world of "RWBY", which is owned by Rooster Teeth. All the characters in this story are created and owned by Rooster Teeth and I do not claim any ownership over them or the world of Remnant. I am not profiting financially from the creation and publication of this story. Please support the official release.**

* * *

Jaune parked Llamrei and quickly made his way to the cafeteria where the rest of his teammates were already waiting.

Two nights ago he had gone to a movie theater with Pyrrha. The movie itself had been garbage but he remembered the smiles they exchanged each time their fingers brushed against each other reaching for the popcorn. Afterwards they shared a milkshake and a slice of pie at a nearby diner and just... talked.

In the hallway, right before their room, she told him that she had a good time. He noticed her fidgeting, a sharp contrast to her usual confident demeanour. Finally, she placed a kiss on his cheek and told him she was looking forward to their next date. Nora opened the room before he could return the gesture but he hoped he'd get another chance at their next date.

And a date it would be.

This morning he found a nice Atlesian restaurant by Vale's waterfront and got them a dinner reservation. His heart sank once he heard the earliest he could get was in 3 months but the manager recognised him from the papers and got him a table for 2. A feeling of guilt washed over him for using Pyrrha's reputation in such a manner but someone as kind and selfless as her deserved the best.

Jaune scanned the cafeteria for his teammates and immediately spotted Pyrrha's unmistakable ponytail in the crowd. He walked past team RWBY's table along the way and greeted them with a wave.

The teams were sitting at separate tables again, he noticed. True, the cafeteria was crowded but each team still only occupied a single side on their respective table.

Why weren't they sitting together?

This wasn't the first time he had noticed the behaviour. The cold shoulder started with Ruby a couple of weeks ago and seemed to have rubbed off on the rest of her team as well. They still talked but they stopped hanging out outside of classes.

What changed?

A sigh slipped past his lips and he mustered up a smile before taking a seat next to Pyrrha.

"Morning, Beautiful," he greeted with a peck on the check, "I got you something," he revealed a red rose from behind his back.

"Thank you, Jaune, it's lovely," she took the flower and gave it a whiff, "Sorry, but I'm afraid I don't know the occasion."

"No occasion, I just saw it and thought you'd like it," he replied with a shrug, "You like it, right?"

"I certainly do, thank you," she said briefly smiling before the question crossed her mind, "Where did you get it?"

"I had some business in town and picked it up on the way back."

"Anything interesting?"

"Well yeah, actually, but it's a surprise - DUCK!"

He pulled Pyrrha down to avoid a flying object. It exploded on impact against the table behind them.

"Was that an apple?" asked the champion.

He looked to see where it had come from and spotted Yang glaring daggers at his ginger haired teammate. He looked over to Nora and his eyes widened when the pie left her hand and hit Weiss square in the face.

Team RWBY's eyes focused on his bubbly teammate who innocently pointed at Ren.

Maybe the situation still had a diplomatic solution. He walked over to the other table waving a napkin in his hand.

"Guys, guys, let's not do anything hasty I'm sure if we all just take a deep breath we can-"

He didn't know what happened next but somehow he was thrown halfway across the cafeteria right into a window. Apparently, the heiress wasn't someone you could reason with.

"But I had a white flag," he whined after sliding to the floor.

A few missed shots was all it took to start a chain reaction that turned an innocent little quarrel into a full blown food battle royale. His survival instincts kicked in as students hurled food from all directions. He dodged projectiles left and right, ducked under tables and blocked pans of today's desert with a food tray.

He spotted Pyrrha in the crowd and reunited with her behind a flipped table. Most of the student fled the war zone in a stampede and he was able to spot Ren and Nora stacking up tables on top of one another. He used the moment to take a look at the cafeteria.

It was a complete mess. Smashed plates, wasted food and broken furniture as far the eye could see. Team RWBY was all that remained of their classmates and that was good. The dispute had started between them and it would end between them.

When her tower was complete Nora proudly took her spot at the top.

A hearty laugh echoed through the cafeteria from team JNPR's new base.

"I'm queen of the castle! I'm queen of the castle!" sang the ginger haired girl.

"Justice will be swift! Justice will be painful! It will be delicious!" declared Ruby crushing a carton of milk. The rest of her team cheered behind her.

"Off with their heads!" declared Nora. She jumped down and flipped an entire table of watermelons with he rest of the team adding their own to the fray.

Yang armed herself with a pair of turkeys and started smashing the fruit projectiles.

"They're using aura... on food?" he observed.

Blake joined her teammate with a pair of baguettes and he ran forward picking up one of his own. He stopped the bow wearing girl by forcing her to block his attack. The crust crackled under the force. Blake pushed him back but he quickly recovered and went for another slash that hit.

Or at least it should have.

The bread passed through her form but the bookworm vanished into thin air and in rushed yang. She caught him off guard scoring several hits, the last of which sent him flying through the wall and into the kitchen.

Pyrrha caught her partner's weapon as it fell from the sky and jumped back to avoid Blake's downward stab. She was more than a match for the bookworm forcing her to resort to her semblance to escape the champion's attacks.

Yang stepped in to aid her teammate and Pyrrha pulled back drawing her opponents closer. Blake slipped up when she jumped and threw one of her weapons at the redhead. It broke against the floor but provided Pyrrha with the opening to lunge forward and hit the bookworm in the stomach. She flew right into her blonde teammate taking them both out.

Ruby slid across the tables on a tray, jumped off and landed with it against the redhead. The fgorce knocked her back and Ren took over but the reaper jumped out of the way allowing Weiss to intercept them with ketchup trap. The ninja slipped and flew right into a stack of tables.

Nora jumped off the flying furniture and broke away a stray pipe from the wall. She impaled a watermelon on the end and Melonhild was born. The ginger went for an overhead slam against the heiress but her leader jumped in the way, taking the brunt of the attack.

Ruby was flung back and Weiss picked up a swordfish to retaliate with a lunge. Nora was pushed a good deal back but returned with a wicked grin. She forced Weiss into the defensive then swatted away her weapon and sent her flying.

The pillar broke under the force of the impact but Ruby jumped in to catch her before she hit the floor. A dramatic no echoed through the cafeteria and Yang went into a sprint but a loud crash brought her to a halt.

A refrigerator pierced the kitchen wall and soared through the air. Its body had a light spin to it and once the doors faced downward they swung open unleashing the payload.

* * *

The smell of turkey lingered on his cheek when he came to.

He looked around holding his head and observed the machinery "Fully automated kitchen, I guess Nora owes me 5 Lien."

He spotted a refrigerator and got an idea.

"I just hope I don't throw out my back in the process."

* * *

"Airstrike!" yelled Ruby and dove under a table with Weiss' limp body. Yang grabbed a table of her own and propped it up to shield both herself and Blake from the shower. The refrigerator bombarded team RWBY before lodging itself into the opposite wall.

A clanging noise drew everyone's attention towards the kitchen door. Jaune walked out proudly wielding a pepperoni stick in one hand and a frozen pizza on the other.

"JUNIPER!" his roar echoed through the cafeteria. He huffed through his flared nostrils and met his fellow team leader with a death glare "They had their chance at peace... if it's war they want, it's war they'll get."

Yang threw away the table and sprinted forward picking up a couple of turkeys along the way.

Round two, thought the knight as he rushed forward to meet his opponent.

Bits of mozzarella flew through the air when poultry hit pizza.

Their eyes met for a second.

He pushed them apart but the brawler closed the distance and landed two more hits against his shield with the third one connecting with his face.

He spat some turkey grease from his mouth and ducked underneath her hook. He snuck in a punch with his swordhand then deflected an elbow strike and slammed the pommel end of the peperoni against the back of her head.

Her eyes went red and he jumped back to avoid the next couple of punches but she launched the turkeys right after him.

The knight smirked as the poultry bounced off his shield.

The attack had left her defenceless.

Ren sprinted forward wielding two leeks and assaulted the brawler with a barrage of hits. With a spinning kick he sent the defeated blonde to join the sleeping heiress on the other side of the cafeteria.

Witnessing her partner's defeat Blake picked up a chain of sausages. She led the chain around her body in a manner any gymnast would envy. She whipped her weapon towards the ninja but Nora intercepted and allowed the chain to wrap itself around Melonhild's haft.

With a strong tug she pulled the bookworm towards herself. Blake let go just a second too late and continued her flightpath towards the ginger.

"Batter up!" proclaimed Nora and she sent her right back where she came from.

She hit the wall with so much force he could feel it all the way on the other side of the cafeteria.

With her teammates down, Ruby fell to her knees.

Jaune stepped forward with his chest puffed out.

"You fought valiantly but alas, victory is ours. Yield now and leave with what honor you have left," Jaune said with the deepest voice he could muster.

There was a moment of silence but when she looked up, her eyes were screaming determination, it sent chills down his back.

This wasn't over.

A crack sounded through the cafeteria.

Jaune looked up at the refrigerator.

It seemed Blake's impact had wiggled it loose and it was about to fall.

Ruby threw him a smirk that left him blinking.

She grabbed a bench and pushed it against the wall. She climbed on the other end and waited in a mid crouch positon with one leg in front of the other.

The refrigerator fell a moment later and the makeshift seesaw launched the reaper high up into the air where she grabbed another pipe sticking from the wall and broke it off.

After a graceful landing she impaled a baguette at the end of it creating… Crusty Rose?

She pointed her newly formed weapon at him and he banged the peperoni against his pizza accepting her challenge.

She spun her makeshift scythe around her body in a mesmerizing performance then suddenly smashed a soda can on the floor. The explosion propelled her forward at an amazing speed.

Nora dashed to meet the reaper but she avoided her first swing allowing it to hit the ground. Now behind the ginger she hooked the baguette around her ankles and flipped her on her back with a somersault.

Ren threw his leeks, Ruby easily deflecting the vegetables with a spin of her scythe. He attempted a kick but she used her weapon to vault over him and knock him forward with the bottom of her haft.

Ren stumbled forward, tripped and landed right on top of Nora.

Before he could get up the ginger haired girl wrapped her arms and legs around his body.

Ruby turned to him with a confident smile.

He readied his shield with a smirk of his own

She dashed forward and he attempted to block her first strike but a scythe was an extremely unconventional weapon and he failed to account for the fact that the baguette part could easily reach around his defences.

The heel of the bread smacked against the side of his head but he managed to recover. He slashed at the reaper but Ruby ducked and slid between his legs. He realised he wouldn't turn in time to block her attack and readied his aura to take the hit. But his alarms never went off.

He whipped his head around to see Pyrrha's baguette sword break under the reaper's strike.

The attack had caught the champion off-guard and she failed to engage her aura.

The breadcrumbs hadn't even hit the floor yet when Ruby already continued her assault. Pyrrha was forced to block several hits with her forearm before Jaune came to her aid by throwing her his shield.

"Pyrrha!" he called.

The champion caught the pizza and used it to block the heel of the baguette. Ruby smirked and upped the tempo of her strikes. Switching up the pattern, throwing her footwork out of array, it left the redhead without any kind of response time. She allowed her muscle memory to take over, years of combat practice and tournament fights had left her with that much.

But even those proved no match for the reaper's natural born proves.

Crusty rose grazed her knee and it buckled sending her to the ground.

Ruby brought her scythe around for the finisher and…

Missed

She missed a point blank swing.

Ruby was thrown off balance by the blunder. Pyrrha seized the opportunity by sweeping her legs and snatching her weapon out of the air. She pointed the bread at the reaper's neck and locked eyes with her leader awaiting his orders.

He knew Ruby should've won that but Pyrrha had resorted to her semblance.

The redhead moved out of the way when he walked over to his fallen friend. He offered her a hand which she shyly accepted. She was lighter than he remembered or maybe he was stronger than when they first met because Ruby practically flew up when he pulled.

She released a cute squeak bumping into his chest and he laughed a the sight of her burning cheeks.

Meanwhile, Ren and Nora had untangled themselves and the rest of team RWBY had also gotten back to their feet. With the situation finally cooled off they got a chance to look themselves over.

They were a mess…

"Would you believe me if I told you one of my plans for today was a paintball tournament?" Ruby asked.

Their uniforms resembled something you'd sooner see at a music festival than a school for future huntsmen.

So they did the only reasonable thing one might do in the situation.

They laughed

Nothing like a no holds barred food war to bring friends back together.


	9. Chapter 9

**DISCLAIMER: This is a work of fan fiction using characters from the world of "RWBY", which is owned by Rooster Teeth. All the characters in this story are created and owned by Rooster Teeth and I do not claim any ownership over them or the world of Remnant. I am not profiting financially from the creation and publication of this story. Please support the official release.**

* * *

Keep your work and pleasure areas separate.

That's what dad taught him and so far it's worked out well. He discovered he was way more productive studying in the library and so were his teammates. At least Nora managed to do her homework before she turned her textbook into a pillow.

Progress

With his daily studying quota met he found himself with some free time so he picked up _The Art of War_ on Ren's recommendation. A very enjoyable read although he doubted he'd ever-

 _"Nooooo! My fearless soldiers!"_

He cringed at the scream.

The sounds had been coming from the neighbouring table for the better part of the hour and as far as he could tell, it was still just their first game.

He groaned internally.

The knight looked over to his partner who seemed unphased by the noises.

He came here for peace and quiet.

Was that too much to ask?

He picked up his book again and mustered up as much focus as he possibly could.

It was a good book, he repeated in his head, he just needed to allow himself to be drawn in.

 _"Goodbye my friends, you will be avenged."_

The members of team RWBY proved worthy adversaries as they slowly increased their volume. Their whispers turned into a full blown conversation but he managed to block them out.

They were no match for the sound of his OWN THOUGHTS, he decided with a smirk until NORA started snoring like a BEAR.

 _"Bah!"_

He took a deep breath to calm his nerves but he froze when a new sound interrupted him.

REN!

QUIET AS A MOUSE, REN.

 _"Bah! BAH, I say!"_

TURNING PAGES, FLAPPING THE PAPER LIKE A MADMAN

AND PYRRHA?

 _"I say, it looks like I'm taking two cards in my hand!"_

PYRRHA STARTED TAPPING HER FOOT!

He closed his book with an loud clap.

"Pancakes!" exclaimed Nora, woken by the sound.

Jaune's eye had a twitch to it as the stress finally reached a boiling point.

He was getting nowhere.

"Is something wrong, Jaune?" asked Pyrrha noticing his anger.

He stood up from the table, "I can't focus. I'm gonna go fetch a - who's that?"

Two unfamiliar faces.

A blonde… faunus… and a freakishly tall blue haired guy were talking to Ruby and her teammates.

Pyrrha turned at his question, "I've seen them before. I believe they were in the cafeteria the other day. Perhaps they're here for the tournament?"

"Already?! But that's months away."

"It's not uncommon for students to enter an exchange program with the hosting academy," explained Ren.

"This way they get the chance experience all that Vale has to offer. The cousine, the culture, the people..." added Pyrrha.

Not to mention their strengths, weaknesses and fighting styles.

He mused on the situation at hand.

Visitors automatically got an advantage over the home teams.

The Vytal tournament held no prizes at the end but that didn't mean he wasn't eager to win it.

The question plagued his mind, how far was he willing to go secure their victory.

Would it be foul play if he looked into the competition?

He had been keeping tabs on all his classmates during combat class and had countermeasures for each them.

Would this really be any different?

His dad always said that preparation was half the battle.

As team leader he had a duty to guide his teammates through any challenge. He couldn't call himself _the best leader his team can get_ if he didn't do this.

But he needed coffee first.

* * *

He headed over to the CCT tower where he met Daisy, a very helpful operator. Daisy kindly provided him with the list of teams that had registered for the Vytal tournament. Thankfully, all the info was publicly available and he quickly discovered why.

It contained a hundred team names with over 400 students… this was going to take a while.

He also had Daisy pull all available data on any of them to his scroll. With the information in his pocket he returned to the library where the rest of his team was just cleaning up.

"Are you staying?" Ren asked.

"Just a couple of hours, don't worry, I'll be in bed by midnight."

With a nod the ninja left with Nora closely following behind.

Pyrrha slung her bag over her shoulder and turned to him a final time, "Are we still up for tomorrow's date?"

"Of course," he replied with a smile, "I've got something special planned just for you."

"I'm looking forward to it already, take care."

He took out his scroll and a couple of notepads and started with his research. He glanced over to the table opposite to him where team RWBY had started a new game together with the exchange students.

Thankfully, he remembered to bring his headphones this time around.

* * *

The first thing he discovered was that the list he had received wasn't final. The Vytal festival only accepted 8 teams from each of the four academies. The final 32 were decided at the end of the school year and each academy had their own criteria for choosing. Atlas decided based on GPA, Shade by popular vote, Mystral by headmaster's recommendation and Beacon through a point based skill evaluation system that is carefully kept track of by the staff.

...in other words, do good in class and hope you end up on top.

He sighed.

He spotted JNPR on the list of teams, right below CRDL and above RWBY. He wondered if he'd have to face his friends in the tournament.

For their sake, he hoped it wouldn't come to it.

Okay, so that's three teams he knew inside and out.

Only 97 more to go.

* * *

All things considered, the research was going… well?

 _3rd grade spelling bee champion_

 _International photography award winner_

 _2nd place Academic decathlon_

Who was he kidding, this was horrible. He was barely on the second team and all the info he had on them was absolutely useless.

Daisy had gone all out on his request.

He released a groan in frustration but quickly brought his hands up to cover his mouth.

He was in a library, he remembered.

Wait!

"...Why's it so dark?" he asked realising someone had turned off the lights. Or rather every other light except the one directly above his table.

How long had he been here?

Checking his scroll he noticed it was almost eleven.

His tired eyes slowly wandered over to the table opposite of him.

It was empty… well, unoccupied, at least

There was a box on the table that peaked his curiosity.

He stood up with a groan, his muscles sore from the sitting session and made his way over there.

"Remnant: The Game," he read.

Ruby must've left it here.

It was a popular game. He had a copy of it at home but he's never played it.

He picked up one of the game pieces and observed it.

"Why are your units represented by grimm?" he asked out loud.

This game made no sense.

Although, the plastic nevermore did bring back memories of their initiation. He remembered the gorge, the giant nevermore, Ruby saving him...

His smile dropped..

He had celebrated too early and it could've cost him his life. Looks like he had a guardian angel looking out for him.

Ironic

He put away the pieces, cards and game board into their box then brought it over to his table.

They lived just across the hall. He could return it on his way back. Maybe tomorrow, depends on when he'll finish up tonight.

After getting back to his seat he closed the folder with the news articles and thought he'd have more luck with the video material. It was by far the largest folder but even that one proved a disappointment. Over half its content was directly linked to Pyrrha. He even found a funny cereal commercial among the videos. You could see the disgust on her face.

 _Probably hadn't mastered her acting skills yet._

Most of the other files contained footage of her tournament fights. Whether it was one on one or two on one, she dominated her opponents at every stage of the fight. She combined grace and elegance with cold-blooded brutality. Even when her opponent managed to disarm her she either took the fight to the ground or used her semblance to retrieve her weapons.

 _Polarity_

An incredible ability that allowed her change the tide of the battle.

Her semblance wasn't common knowledge, as far as he could tell. Pyrrha had given several interviews for sports and women's magazines and there was never any mention of polarity or magnetism or any of the related terms.

Jaune looked at her next few fights with a more critical eye. He noticed how her opponents seemed to completely miss critical blows.

"Just like she did with Ruby."

She was untouchable yet somehow relished in the challenge. She put on a show for the audience against fully armored opponents that she could easily just rip apart in the first second of the fight… or maybe she couldn't.

She had magnetised his shoulder pad to find him in the Emerald forest…

Was that it, was a physical contact necessary for her semblance to work?

Oum, knows but he could always just ask her, not like she hesitated revealing it to him the first time round.

He wondered about his own semblance. His aura was amplification was supposedly unique but it wouldn't do him any good in singles... probably not even doubles. Maybe he should just leave the fighting to Pyrrha and… Nora?

He groaned at the realisation. The only thing more useless than _his_ semblance was Ren's emotion masking.

Semblances aren't everything, that much he knows, but they do help. Except when their purpose is entirely grimm related.

A look on his scroll aaaaand it's half past midnight.

So much for his promise.

He sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose for a moment.

"No way I'm stopping now. I'm on a ro-"

*Yawn*

"Roll," he finished smacking his lips.

"Okay just… one more… then I'm done…"

…

…

...

"Where is it? Where is it? Where is it?"

The voice woke him from his nap. Once Jaune started stirring he became painfully aware of the puddle of drool he was lying in. He shot up with a gasp and quickly used his sleeve to wipe himself clean.

"Eeep! Who's there? Jaune?"

Their eyes met, both their hearts racing out of control from the sudden surge of adrenaline.

"Hey, Ruby…"

"Were you sleeping in the library?" she asked tilting her head.

"Must've dozed of," he realised. The blood returned to his cheek with a dull pain in tow.

"Good thing I came by," she said with a giggle.

He gave her a soft smile in return.

…

…

...

"You forgot your board game," he said pointing at the box on his table.

Her face brightened at the revelation, "Thank you, thank you, thank you! You're the best, Jaune, thank you!"

He waved it off, "No big deal."

That smile of hers…

How it brightened his day.

"You studying already?" she asked looking at his open notebooks.

"Sort off. I'm trying to get a general idea of the competition we'll be facing in the Vytal tournament."

"Isn't that cheating?"

"Not when it's all publicly available information."

She gave it a thought before agreeing with the knight, "As long as you didn't break any rules…"

"If you know your enemies and know yourself, you will not be imperiled in a hundred battles."

"...Ren?"

"Sun Tzu, actually."

"Okay, umm, it's kinda late so I'm just gonna… yeah," she turned on her heels to make a run for it but he stopped her.

"Hey, Ruby?"

"Yes, Jaune?"

"Can I ask you something?"

"Sure"

"Have you… have you been avoiding me?"

"Pfft, nah, why would you think that?"

He could see right through her façade.

"It's just that," he continued, "I don't know… how come we don't hang out anymore?"

Her expression saddened and she found it hard to look him in the eye.

"I was just trying to give you some space."

"From what?"

"...Doesn't matter."

He studied her expression. The sadness was unbefitting of the reaper.

"Hey," he gently called, forcing her to meet his gaze, "We're friends, okay? Nothing's ever gonna change that. If there's something bothering you I need to know."

"Jaune it's…"

She was hiding something.

"Is it Cardin again? I swear-"

She giggled at his outburst and he smiled at the sight of her laughter.

"..."

"So… are you gonna tell me?" he asked with a dorky smile.

"Mmm, nope," she replied with a giggle.

Figures, but as long as she's happy, it didn't matter.

"So…"

"So?"

"Congrats on Pyrrha and you."

"You read the news?" he asked in disbelief.

"Yup," she proudly replied..

Jaune wasn't buying it. He narrowed his eyes at the reaper and watched as her defences faltered.

"Okay, so maybe I didn't read the _whole_ thing, I just skimmed it… I mean, Iread the front page… I looked at the pictures… I read the comics?... okay, fine, Yang told me… Jaaauuune," she whined but he maintained his solemn expression.

"Nora told me," she admitted in defeat.

"I knew it."

"Did you?"

"Not a clue."

"...And?"

"And what?"

She avoided his eyes playing with her fingers.

"Are you?"

"I mean... technically, yes, we are dating. We've been on one date and one kinda-date."

"What was it like?" Ruby asked.

"...Oniony."

She blinked not sure what to say, "So, umm… are you two… exclusive?"

"Umm...What do you mean by that?"

"I DON'T KNOW! Yang keeps using the word and I've been agreeing with her for so long I'm too embarrassed to ask."

"Well, we're not officially a couple, if that's what you're asking. I mean, we haven't even kissed yet because, well, i-it's a long story."

"...Oniony?"

"...Oniony"

They both laughed at that and before long the silence returned.

"So…" now it was his turn to break it.

"So?"

"Your new friend has some killer abs on him."

She burst into giggles at that, "Careful, Jaune, Pyrrha might get jealous."

"Hey, as far as I know, we're not _exclusive_ ," he replied with air quotes.

"His name's Sun, he's cool, funny and I think he has a crush on Blake."

"Miss tall, dark and broody?"

"Hey, Blake's great... once you get to know her."

"And she's not bothered by the… prehensile tail?"

"Well of course not, she's a faunus herse-" Ruby's hands came to her mouth to stop the words but the damage had been done.

"Blake's a faunus?"

She winced at the question, "Please don't tell anyone."

"I won't, trust me, I mean, I don't care, but I respect her privacy."

"Thank you," she replied.

The reaper's eyes turned to his notes and scroll. He had just paused a video of his partner before falling asleep.

"How does it look for us?" Ruby asked looking at his notes.

"If you want the numbers, the academy hosting the tournament has never won it in the last 80 years so… not good."

"I guess we'll just have to be the first."

"When you say _we_ , I assume you meant team JNPR?"

Ruby narrowed her eyes at him, "Cheer up, Jaune, I'm sure silver will suit you."

"Remind me, who won the food fight again?"

She blushed in embarrassment recalling her blunder at the end.

"I can't believe I missed," she muttered.

He wondered if he should tell her. She had shared Blake's secret with him but that was by accident and Pyrrha's semblance wasn't his to reveal.

"It happens to the best of us."

She sighed in frustration and looked at his scroll.

"Why were you looking at Pyrrha?"

"Just needed to know something," he replied quickly closing the clip along with the rest of the video folder.

"Mind if I check something?"

He handed her the scroll and she opened up the picture folder then the Mystral subfolder.

Inside there were even more folders named after their respective teams. She opened the first in the row and one of the pictures it held. It was a group photo of an all female team taken on their recent beach trip.

A blush caressed both their cheeks at the sight of the bikini clad lasses.

"Umm, I don't think we'll learn anything from pictures," he finally said.

The reaper wordlessly closed the file and returned to the Mystral folder.

"What are you looking for?"

"Nothing, I just met some students in the hallway and I didn't catch their names. You think we could find them?"

"I'll see what I can do."

They checked all the folders but Ruby couldn't identify her new friends in any of them. Cross-checking the folders with the list of contenders he discovered their missing team.

Or at least he hoped he did.

"One of the girls did have green hair and the guy had silver so it could be them," the reaper observed.

 _Cinder Fall_

 _Emerald Sustrai_

 _Mercury Black_

There was no official team name, no pictures, footage or any sort of info on any of them. They didn't even have enough members to be considered a team. How were they planning on qualifying for the tournament?

"There _were_ just 3 of them in the halway," said Ruby.

"Maybe… you know."

"Yeah..."

Being a huntsman was a dangerous profession. The schools invested a lot of resources into preparing the next generation of warriors but an individual's safety was their own concern. There would be no safety nets or standby professors after graduation and it only takes one slip up to…

Some of the second year students were still in mourning over the tragedy that had befallen team COFY.

There were of course less morbid alternatives like dropping out of the academy or expulsion but those were rare. Becoming a huntsman wasn't something applicants took lightly, it required a level of dedication.

Ruby released a high pitched yawn right next to him and he suddenly became aware of the weight of his own eyelids.

"Wanna call it a night?" he asked.

"Yeah, I've got a big mission tomorrow."

That peaked his interest, "Anything fun?"

"Just single-handedly taking down a corrupt organization conspiring against the Kingdom of Vale," she said with a smile that left him staring.

"Wait, for real?"

"Yup! Wanna tag along?"

"DO I - Wait! I can't, I've got a date."

"Sounds more like you've got an important mission of your own," she said with a shy smile.

"When you put it like that…" he tried to return the smile but it quickly died when the thought crossed his mind. He placed a firm hand on her shoulder and looked her in the eyes, "Just… be careful, okay?"

"I will…"


	10. Chapter 10

**DISCLAIMER: This is a work of fan fiction using characters from the world of "RWBY", which is owned by Rooster Teeth. All the characters in this story are created and owned by Rooster Teeth and I do not claim any ownership over them or the world of Remnant. I am not profiting financially from the creation and publication of this story. Please support the official release.**

* * *

The Gordian knot

Columbus' egg

The Sphinx's riddle

Legendary trials solved by heroes. Stories told to children to teach them the solution is not always what it seems.

Jaune would rather take on any of them over the trial he was facing at this very moment. Beads of sweat ran down the side of his head while locked in a staring contest with his own reflection. His eyes burrned but he was unblinking in the challenge. His aura was already halfway depleted but he had to endure the pain and finally make a choice.

"No good, I can't do this! Where's Ren when you need him?"

He took his scroll and gave it a final try.

"She has to answer."

The device rang against his ear.

 _"...Hey, Jaune, what's up"_

His eyes welled with joy at the sound of her voice.

"Ruby, thank Oum, I-I need you!"

His voice hoarse with desperation.

 _"What? What's wrong? Where are you?"_

"I need you, Ruby, please! I'm in my room, you have to help me I can't choose-"

CRASH!

Team JNPR's door was suddenly thrown off its rails right into the opposite wall.

Through the opening arrived a screaming Ruby swinging the mighty Crescent Rose. The curved blade was thirsty for blood but the only living creature in the room was the frozen blonde knight.

She moved a wet lock of hair out of her eye and spotted the _damsel in distress_.

"Don't worry, Jaune, I'll save you!"

She scanned the room trying to find the danger but everything seemed in check so she lowered her weapon.

"Wait, what's wrong?"

The knight remained frozen.

"Oh no, I'm too late. I'm sorry Jaune. Know this, you _will_ be aven-"

"Ruby?"

Crescent rose dropped to the floor with a loud clang and a gasp escaped the reaper's mouth.

"JAUNE, you're alive!" she exclaimed overjoyed.

"Ruby?"

"Yes?"

"Where are your clothes?"

The reaper turned to the mirror on the wall. She was wearing nothing but a red towel wrapped around her body. In the corner of the mirror she spotted Jaune staring at her.

Standing on the other side of he room... in a white dress shirt, black boxers and a pair of socks held up by sock garters.

"EEEP, STOP LOOKING!"

"ARRGH! SORRY!"

* * *

After putting on a fresh set of clothes, and making sure Jaune had put on some pants, she returned to JNPR's dorm room with a blush on her cheeks and her hair wrapped in a towel.

"How come none of your teammates stopped you?" Jaune asked.

"They're still in town. I really needed a shower so I came back early," she explained.

"Oh right, the super secret mission, how did that go?"

"It was AWESOME, first I wanted to see the CCT tower but then I ran into Penny and we were chased by the military and she threw me into a garbage container - that's why I needed the shower - but then we had an awesome giant robot fight that was like the coolest thing you've ever seen."

"Man, can't believe I missed that," he replied.

"The robot fight? The bad guy escaped so we're bound to see more of those."

"I guess... "

"What did you need my help for?" she asked with a smile.

He picked up something from his bed and showed it to her, "I need your honest opinion." he raised two bow ties to his shoulders, "Do I go with the blue or the yellow bow tie. I think the blue one compliments my eyes but the yellow one just screams _Jaune_."

Ruby face vaulted onto a bed.

"You okay?" he asked, "Sorry if I got you worked up."

"It's okay," she replied her voice muffled by the bed covers. "so you haven't had your date yet?"

"No, still getting ready," he explained buttoning up his black vest. "Pyrrha went out to get her hair done. Ren was supposed to help me but he had to take Nora to the emergency dentist."

"Cavity?"

"Yeah."

He took a golden cufflink from his desk but had some trouble putting it on. Ruby noticed his distress and walked over to him to help. With both hands at her disposal she put it on in no time, "Hand me the other one."

"Thanks"

"It's no big deal."

He grabbed the saten coat from the rack to complete the ensemble, well, almost.

"So blue or yellow?"

Ruby studied him in the mirror before cheerfully replying, "Neither."

"Are you sure, I still think there's something missing without a bow tie."

"If you really need one you should probably go with red."

"Red?"

"Red"

Red

Red?

RED!

He grabbed his head at the realisation. How had he not thought of it. Pyrrha is probably going to be wearing something red.

It's her color.

"You're a genius, Ruby," he said and ran over to his drawer. The blue or yellow would've clashed with the black and white but the red really complimented the look.

However, it created another problem. He had been deciding between the two colors for a different reason altogether.

"It looks way better than that baby blue," complimented Ruby.

"It does, but I don't have a pocket square for it."

"Oh, wait right there."

The reaper disappeared from the room for a second and returned with a handful of red handkerchiefs. She quickly found one in a similar shade of red and handed it to him.

"Now you're ready."

"And with time to spare," he said looking himself in the mirror, "Totally could've made the mission."

"You didn't miss much... other than the super cool giant robot fight."

"I could've helped."

"Nah, my team and I had it covered."

He shared a smile with the reaper. She really helped him out there. He was glad he had a friend like her to rely on. She freed her hair from the towel revealing the frizzled mess.

"So what are your plans for tonight?"

"I have a dinner reservation," he said proudly.

"Someplace fancy?"

"You bet."

The reaper cooed in response, "How are you getting there? Airship?" she asked with a giggle.

He looked at her sternly, "Ha ha, do you _want_ me to throw up?

Ruby giggled at the thought.

"For your information, I got us a car and a driver."

"Pyrrha's lucky to have you," she said with a shy smile, "What about after dinner?"

"Well the kinda-date ended pretty abruptly."

"The first one?"

"That's right, but the bench we sat on is just a short walk away. I'm gonna take her there and recreate our moment but this time," he reached into his pocket and pulled out a breath freshener, "I'll be ready."

"You'll… kiss her?" Ruby quietly asked.

"That's the plan."

Ruby looked away with a blush, "How…" she softly whimpered, "I mean... do you even know how?"

"Of course I know how to kiss, this isn't my first relationship, you know."

"Oh?"

"I stayed with my prom date for a while. We liked each other but... we both knew going in the relationship wasn't going to last."

"...How come?"

"I already had my acceptance letter from Beacon."

"Oh"

His fellow leader got up from the bed and headed for the door, "Well I guess you've got it figured out, have fun, enjoy your evening and stay safe."

 _*Crickets*_

"What?"

"Eeep!"

And with that she dashed out of the room.

Time seemed to crawl as he waited for Pyrrha to arrive but when the door finally slid open he was stunned by the sight. Her red dress reached just below the knees. It covered her shoulders giving her arms a more feminine appearance. Her ponytail was gone along with her circlet and her long hair was swept over her shoulder on one side. The red lipstick only served to emphasise her natural beauty.

"You look beautiful."

"Thank you. You look handsome as well."

"I try," he walked over to her side and offered her his arm, "Shall we?"

* * *

The evening had gone perfectly. The only hiccup being the drive. The driver had apologised in advance. For some reason the highways were closed off so they had to take the scenic route. But it didn't bother them. It just meant they got to spend more time in each other's company.

The restaurant also lived up to the hype with its six course meal. The main dish had been accompanied by a glass of Valean red and with their plates empty they were currently waiting for deserts.

"I was 16 and my manager thought it would be a good publicity stunt, but in truth, I did it for the people. The Grimmean Leo had been haunting the mountains for centuries and I felt it my duty to stop it," Pyrrha told.

Jaune listened with intrigue, "So how'd it go?"

"I quickly discovered how the grimm managed to survive all this time."

"Old grimm are always smart."

"It wasn't just that, the beast's hide was impregnable to all manner of weapons."

"What did you do?"

"I had lured the Leo into a cave and I recognised a vein of iron ore running through its ceiling. After getting separated from Miló I managed reach it with my semblance and collapse the entire ceiling on top of us. I thought I'd at least trap it if I couldn't defeat it."

"And trap yourself in the process?"

"No, the thought never even occurred to me. I've always believed it was my destiny to become a huntress and that meant that I couldn't die in that cave."

"That's a lot of faith to put in a higher power."

She giggled at his comment, "Jaune, I never considered destiny as some predetermined fate you can't escape. I view it as a final goal, something you work towards your entire life to achieve. Back when we first met you described my view of destiny perfectly."

"Hard work and dedication, yeah I remember," he replied with a smile.

He took another sip from his glass. "So, what do you think of this place?"

"It is exquisite, although…"

"Is something wrong?"

"I'm sorry, don't get me wrong, it has been a delightful evening but I wouldn't have minded something... smaller."

"I know,", his hand found hers across the table, "You like feeling like a normal person and I get that. We can have all the movie nights you want after this but tonight, I really wanted to bring you here... I wanted to take my girlfriend someplace fancy."

It was a slip of the tongue but the shy smile she offered in response showed him it didn't bother her.

* * *

"Are you ready to head back, mr. Arc?"

The driver had brought the car around and was holding the door open for them.

Jaune looked over to Pyrrha and they exchanged a smile, "Actually, I think we'll go for a walk, I'll call you when we're ready."

"As you wish."

The night air was perfect for cooling off and the full moon provided them with plenty of light under the cloudless sky. He noticed Pyrrha rub her arm and he quickly draped his jacket over her shoulders.

A familiar part of town soon came into view and the champion recognised the bench.

The tension was palpable.

The first time around it had been the adrenaline combined with the champion's touch that had pushed him but now the courage to repeat the action eluded him. There had been plenty of opportunities back at the restaurant but he was so sure of his plan he stubbornly stuck with it despite Pyrrha's signals.

They were sitting just inches apart but it could as well have been miles.

He spotted movement from the corner of his eye.

Pyrrha had untwinned her finger and placed a hand on the wooden bench.

His trembling finger reached out to find the champion's.

She gasped at the touch of his warm palm against her cool skin.

Pyrrha's green eyes met the soft gaze of the blue eyed knight.

He moved closer until their sides were pressed together.

Jaune turned his body towards her and his free hand found the champion's cheek.

She leaned into the touch.

"I'm going to kiss you now," he quietly told her.

Her lips quivered as his thumb gently caressed her cheek.

He inched closer but right before he could close the distance

Pyrrha beat him to it.

Her lips hit his with a force but the contact only remained for a moment as Jaune pulled back in surprise.

Pyrrha quickly covered her mouth and started apologising in a wave of panic but he stopped her rambling by cupping her cheek once more.

The touch instantly silenced the champion.

"Let's try that again," said the knight and closed the gap between them.

Pyrrha's eyes widened at the contact but once her brain caught up with the rest of her body she gently pushed back.

It was little more than the contact itself. Two pairs of lips pressed against one another in a sign of affection. The emotional weight it carried, however…

They pulled apart slowly without breaking eye contact. Jaune gazed into Pyrrha's green pools while running a hand down the side of her waist.

Wordlessly, he leaned in again. This time he tilted his head and parted his lips slightly. He was overjoyed when Pyrrha followed his example. Her arms found their way around his neck. Her fingers grabbed hold of his blonde hair and the two stayed there undisturbed under the starry night sky. The contact lasted longer this time and it was the champion who pulled away first with a gasp.

"You're allowed to breathe," he told her with a chuckle

"Sorry"

He reached out to wrap an arm around her shoulders. She leaned into his embrace and they looked out onto the river for the the rest of the evening.

* * *

Pyrrha was already softly snoring when he slipped into his bed. He pulled out his scroll to set his alarm when he noticed a new message.

It was from Ruby

 _Made the headlines again_ ;)

There was a link attachment that led to an article about the giant robot fight she had mentioned. He skimmed the article and instead opened up the security cam footage.

He could only stare in awe at the harmony. Ruby's directions were short and clear. The team's responses executed to a T. They had known each other for little more than a semester yet they fought like they had been together a lifetime.

JNPR may have won their little food fight but that was just them messing around. It wasn't a proper demonstration of their abilities.

He thought they were equals.

But somewhere along the way they had been left in the dust.

Team RWBY was leagues ahead and he'd have to give it his all if he wanted _any_ chance in the upcoming tournament.


	11. Chapter 11

**DISCLAIMER: This is a work of fan fiction using characters from the world of "RWBY", which is owned by Rooster Teeth. All the characters in this story are created and owned by Rooster Teeth and I do not claim any ownership over them or the world of Remnant. I am not profiting financially from the creation and publication of this story. Please support the official release.**

* * *

"Super speed, magic glyphs, shadow decoys and shock absorption... does anyone know what I just listed?"

"Me, me, me!"

"Nora?"

"Team RWBY's semblances?"

"Exactly! And what do those semblances have in common?"

"...The users are all girls?" asked the ginger haired girl.

Okay, so maybe he should've actually rehearsed his opening line.

"Let me start over," he scratched his head looking for the words. "...Great moments… are born from great opportunity and that's what we have here. That's what we've earned. One tournament-"

"Is that from a movie?" interrupted Ren.

"Why yes, Jaune and I watched it together. It was lovely," replied Pyrrha.

It did sound familiar.

Maybe he was overthinking this.

Mom always said he should just speak from the heart.

The knight cleared his throat to gain his teammates attention.

"Guys, I've been doing some research and I'm not gonna lie, the tournament's gonna be tough. We've got some impressive people coming our way and while we've been training together we're still a long way from ready."

He looked over to Pyrrha who gave him a reassuring nod.

"We're only first year students. Nobody's expecting us to get anywhere far and even if we lose we'll get another chance at this in two years time but to be honest, I don't want that."

"THIS is our year," he said clenching his fist. "Vale's hosting the tournament and we have a shot at achieving something that's never been done before. I admit, I've only lead you into battle twice but both those times team JNPR has come out on top. I can't give you any promises but I believe we can win this thing. So, are you with me?"

"What are you talking about? Of course we're with you, fearless leader," quipped Nora, "Right Ren?"

"Sure… why not?"

"You needn't even ask," replied Pyrrha.

"Thanks guys, that means a lot?"

The trust he had but now what. He looked into the palm of his hand summoning the faint glow of his semblance.

Trust was a two way street.

It was his turn.

"I know most of your semblances already, I think it's only fair that I reveal mine," a brilliant light enveloped his entire body. "My semblance is aura amplification. I can use it to, well, to amplify other people's auras. You can do some pretty impressive things when I put your semblance in overdrive, trust me."

"Plus, I bet it comes in handy when you have to use the bathroom at night," commented Nora.

He never thought about that one. So may stubbed toes. His gaze turned to his ginger haired teammate, "Nora? If I may ask, what's your semblance?"

"Electricity makes me strong."

"How strong are we talking here?"

She shrugged with a smile.

"Yang strong?"

"Depends how much energy there is."

She was already freakishly strong on her own. He'd have to see this semblance of hers in action.

His gaze turned to his partner.

"Pyrrha?"

The champion smiled then demonstrated her ability by juggling both her shield and weapon in the air.

"My semblance is polarity."

Nora reached into her pocket and handed her partner a lien card.

Jaune silently watched the duo until Ren gave the explanation, "She was sure it had something to do with fire."

"Pyrrha… fire," she raised her palms balancing the two like a pair of scales, "am I the only seeing the connection?"

The knight rolled his eyes with a smile then turned to their final member. "Aaand masking negative emotions."

"Correct"

"Okay, so now that we know a little bit more about each other I would like to open team JNPR's first ever team combat training. As you know the arena offers many kinds of robot drones with adjustable training difficulty to practice on."

"Crank it up to 11 'cause mama's gonna bust some-"

"We're not gonna use any of them."

"Aww, but why not," whined Nora.

"A robot can't improvise, it's no substitution for a real opponent… besides, we only got this place for 2 hours and I can't have you scrapping robots one at a time. Instead, I wanna start the day off with a spar. Any volunteers? "

The girls eagerly raised their hands and took the ring.

Jaune carefully observed the fight from the sidelines. It was a pretty even match or at least it seemed even. Pyrrha evaded Nora's heavy blows with ease and snuck in her own sword slashes and spear thrusts. She slowly chipped away at Nora's aura but all it took was one hit from magnhild to even the aura meters.

But suddenly the tables turned. Nora seemed to lose control of her weapon with every swing. Even the simple task of wielding it appeared difficult for the bubbly girl. Pyrrha landed a barrage of hits in quick succession and Jaune quickly stepped in to stop the match.

"Great job you two."

It seemed she did need to touch her target before she could manipulate it.

* * *

Ren ran circles around him trying to outflank him but he didn't give him the chance. The spray of bullets bounced off his shield and the ninja was forced to reload for the third time that fight.

"Come on, Ren, at least get me down to 90%. This is pathetic," commented Jaune.

The ninja closed in and delivered two strikes. Jaune's aura crackled against the verdant blades but he quickly returned the favor by ramming his knee into his stomach.

He backed away slightly to give Ren the chance to get back up.

"If you'd put more force into your strikes you could've had me."

The ninja stretched his shoulder then threw his weapon.

Jaune recognised the returning throw and swatted the spinning blade out of the ring.

"You just lost a weapon. What are you going to do now?" he taunted.

Ren growled in frustration. He was trying to come up with a plan but Jaune denied him the opportunity. He launched forward knocking the other gun out of Ren's hand then followed up with two wide swings.

The ninja recovered and tried to counter with a kick.

When his shin struck the knight's upper arm he recoiled in pain.

Ren caught the fading glow of Jaune's amplified aura when he looked up. The knight pointed his sword at his kneeling opponent, "It's over," he told him in a stoic voice, "Get your weapons and hit the showers. We're done here."

He quietly left the training room with Nora following suit.

Pyrrha approached him with a frown, "Did you have to go so hard on him?"

"I can't afford to go easy."

"Is winning the tournament truly worth losing a friend?"

"It's not just about the tournament. I've been keeping score," he replied pulling out his scroll. "His academic success speaks for itself but combat class… that's a different story. He has decent grades but his win percentage is in the bottom half of our class. Without an effective combat semblance to fall back on he'll only have his fighting skills to rely on... I'm worried about him."

"I can't say I approve of your methods," the redhead said and placed a comforting hand on his shoulder, "Perhaps you should try a… gentler approach first."

"Okay, I'll try," with a mischievous smile he wrapped an arm around the redhead's waist. He pulled her body against his and surprised her with a deep kiss.

"I'll do it for you."

* * *

He found his raven haired teammate in the kitchen, whipping up a fresh batch of pancakes. If he spent half as much time training as he did baking - gentler approach.

"You busy?" he asked as he approached the ninja.

"A little."

"Too busy to talk?"

"Of course not."

Jaune took a seat at the table while he considered his next words.

"Semblance unlock prevalence is about 7% amongst the general population and 89% amongst huntsmen. Did you know that?"

"...No?"

"Of course, not all semblances are equal, some are versatile, others not, some have combat applications… and some don't."

Ren gave him the subtlest of nods in response.

"I guess mine kinda falls into the last category. Buuut, as you saw, I can make due."

The pan had heated up and he added a small piece of butter to it.

"We both know your semblance won't do us any good in the tournament but that doesn't mean you can't help."

The butter melted and he added the pancake mix.

"I've given it some thought and I think I've figured out what's holding you back."

He turned the half-done pancake over.

"It's got nothing to do with your fighting style"

He took the finished pancake off the stove and added it to the stack.

"It's your weapon."

Ren was just about to reach for the ladle but his hand froze at his leader's revelation.

"Stormflower?" he asked.

"It's gotten you this far but I think it might be time for a change. I'm sure there's a weapon out there that better compliments your fighting style and I'm not gonna rest until we find it. What do you say?"

Ren turned back towards the counter and continued with his cooking.

"I'll think about it."

"Is the first batch done yet?"

Nora surprised them with her arrival. The ginger haired girl looked between the her two teammates, "Am I interrupting something?"

"I was just leaving," Jaune replied getting up. "Think about what I said," he told Ren.

* * *

He tried the softer approach because Pyrrha had asked him and he was regretting it dearly. The next day in combat class he kept shooting glares in Ren's direction but the ninja was too busy scribbling in his sketchbook.

Just because you weren't the one down in the ring didn't mean you couldn't learn something.

His eyes wandered across the stands. The classroom had never been so full before. There were dozens of new faces everywhere he turned. He also spotted two members from Ruby's mystery team on the other side of the classroom. He secretly snapped a photo of them to add to his research material.

After classes team JNPR gathered for the day's training session. Well, almost, they were still one member short.

"Is he coming?" asked the knight pacing around the room.

Nora shrugged.

"Oh come on, the two of you are basically joint at the hip. Where is the guy?"

Before the interrogation could proceed the door slid open and the teen in question arrived.

"Sorry for running late," he apologised with an bow.

"And your excuse is..."

"I was meditating and lost track of time."

Was he doing this out of spite?

Because of what he had said to him yesterday?

The arena was no place for emotions. He decided to give Ren some space. Unfortunately for him, he failed to heed his own advice and got his rear handed to him by Nora.

* * *

Things only turned for the worse in the following days.

He had offered them a finger and they took an arm.

He had been waiting in the training room for the last hour. Pyrrha was the first to call informing him that she won't be able to make it due to some private matters, Nora was't picking up her scroll and Ren… he missed yesterday's session and he wasn't expecting him to show up today.

The knight cleaved another training robot in half with a sigh. He had been trained with tough love but now that it was his turn to dish it he found he didn't have the stomach for it. He pulled out his scroll to call Ruby for some advice when the door slid open.

"Nora?"

"Hey… we need to talk."

Four words that gave him an uneasy feeling in his stomach.

"Is this about Ren?"

She gave him a silent nod and sat down on a bench.

He sheathed his sword and joined her.

They sat there for awhile. Nora was fidgeting around taking several breaths but each time she stopped herself before the words could be formed.

Nora had one mood, cheerful.

Whatever she was about to tell him must be important.

In the end, she pulled something from behind her back and handed it to him. It was a small knife. The handle was basic and it lacked a sheath but the thing that fascinated him the most was the shape of the blade.

"I guess, now I know where stormflower's design came from. Is this Ren's?"

"Yeah… it's one of the few things he has to remind him of home."

A heavy silence followed.

"We're orphans, Ren and I… the knife was the last thing his father gave him before… I know what you asked him to do but… I'm not telling you to go easy on him, I'm just asking you to understand."

He gave the ginger a few silent nods and returned the knife.

You can't put a price tag on sentimental value. He understood that all too well.

She thanked him and left the training room.

He unclasped Crocea Mors from is hip and drew it from its scabbard.

What if it had been him.

What if somebody had asked him to change his weapon.

The blade had withstood the test of time with just a quick honing here and there. That was more than he could say about his own creation. The weight shape and balance were identical but the metal was something else.

Something stronger than regular steel.

"Easy there, Jaune," he told himself, " not everything in the world is magic. Probably just trace amounts of rare earth elements or something."

But he'd have to destroy it if he wanted to know the exact chemical makeup and that was out of the question.

It was bad enough he had messed with the scabbard.

Dad had been furious about it.

But this wasn't about him.

He needed to make amends to a friend.

* * *

He found Ren later that day by the fountain area. The same same one he had accidentally wandered into on his first day with Ruby. The raven haired boy was sitting on a bench with his legs crossed and his eyes closed. When the knight's shadow hit his eyelids they sprung open.

"Jaune? what are you doing here?"

"I wanted to say I'm sorry... I didn't know."

The other boy blinked, "What do you mean?"

"The training, me singling you out, asking you to change your weapon, all of it. I had no right."

"You're our leader, of course you-"

"No! It was wrong and I know that now."

He took a deep breath then put a hand on Ren's shoulder, "I'm sorry! We'll find a way around this. I'm going to help you become the best huntsman you can possibly be. I don't care what it takes."

He gave Ren his best smile and waited for him to return it but the ninja's expression remained blank.

"Can I speak now?"

"Umm, I guess?"

"There's nothing to apologise for."

"What, but… I thought you were angry with me."

"I wasn't. Perhaps you were imagining things."

They didn't exactly speak much. Mostly because Ren was quiet by nature.

"I guess..."

"You presented me with the facts and I accepted them as such. You were right. My skills have been stagnating for some time now and I hadn't noticed. I knew it wasn't personal."

"What about Stormflower? Nora told me that, well…"

"It's just a weapon… it's not the item but the memories we associate with it that give it value."

He pulled out his sketchbook and opened it at the marked page.

"My… father... was a hunter… and his weapon of choice was the longbow," he turned his sketchbook for the knight to show several different bow designs. "I've been trying to remember exactly what it looked like. It's… been a while since I last saw it. Do you think it would work?"

The gun had evolved from the bow, not the other way around. A bow _felt_ like a step back but...

"You know, someone once told me that not everyone appreciates the classics these days. How about this, as team team leader I promise you, we're going to make the best bow Remnant has ever seen?"

"...Do you have any experience in making ranged weaponry?"

"None whatsoever," he proudly admitted, "but thankfully, I know just the self-proclaimed weapons dork to help us."

Ren observed his sketches once more, "Still, this will leave me vulnerable to attacks in close quarters combat."

"Stormflower has a decent amount of quality steel on it… maybe it's time for a rebirth."

"We could reforge it… what did you have in mind?"

The blonde knight scratched the back of his head, "Well, you're from Anima so why not its most iconic sword."

"The Dao?"

"No, the other one."

"The Jian?"

"I… don't even know what that is."

"...The hook sword?"

"THE KATANA," he snapped, "or maybe a wakizashi. I've always wanted to make one."

"Umm, Jaune, although the katana is native to Anima it's not exactly part of _m_ y cultural heritage."

"And ninjas are?"

"...When can we get started?"


	12. Chapter 12

**DISCLAIMER: This is a work of fan fiction using characters from the world of "RWBY", which is owned by Rooster Teeth. All the characters in this story are created and owned by Rooster Teeth and I do not claim any ownership over them or the world of Remnant. I am not profiting financially from the creation and publication of this story. Please support the official release.**

* * *

 _Knock, knock, knock_

Getting Ruby on board would be easy.

He was sure of it.

He put on his best smile while he waited for the door to slide open.

"Hey, Jaune," she greeted brightly.

"Hey, Ruby, any plans for the weekend?"

She mused for a moment before shaking her head with with a nope.

"Why do you ask?"

"Well, it's kind of a long story but to sum it up, I need your help with a weapon."

She cut him off with a sudden gasp and dashed back into her room.

Jaune blinked in surprise. He knew she'd be interested but - wait, how did she know about the bow?

She didn't, she couldn't, that much he was certain. He peered inside her room to see what she was doing and caught the reaper heading back to him with an armful of blue scrolls.

She let the stack of paper fall on the floor and immediately went to her knees to start checking them.

"No… No… Nu-uh…"

"What are you looking for?" he asked peering over her shoulder.

She located her target amongst the last few scrolls that remained, "This one!"

She jumped to his side to try and show him her drawing but the paper stubbornly attempted to return to its rolled up form.

Jaune noticed her distress and quickly grabbed one end of the scroll while Ruby repositioned her fingers to the other two corners.

"I designed it a little after we met," she told him while he took in the sight.

They were blueprints for a sword of sorts.

A longsword with two fullers on either side, a double crossguard and a firing mechanism of some kind in the hilt with a pommel loaded magazine.

"What is it?"

"Well, you only had a pair of swords when we first met. I thought you could use one that also works as a gun."

"I'm a lousy shot," he confessed and took another look at the blueprints. He checked the scale and made the calculations in his head. It'd be unwieldable at that size but he didn't have the heart to break it to her.

Besides, he was quite happy with his current armaments.

"I call it X-Caliber, do you like it?" she asked him with a hopeful smile.

"It's, uh, it's really cool but," he let go of the paper and let it roll back up, "it's not why I came to see you."

"Oh," she couldn't hide her disappointment.

"Sorry."

She fiddled with the scroll before handing it back to him, "You can still keep it, I mean, I made it for you." Her eyes widened over what she just told him but before she could correct herself the knight already accepted the gift.

"Thanks, Ruby, I appreciate it," he told her.

She smiled with a light blush as a silence filled the air.

"So. what did you need?"

"Oh, right, umm, so I need your help with a weapon - but you already know that part - umm, right, I need your help to make a bow but not for me, it's for Ren. Can you help me?"

"Jaune, a bow isn't exactly dust science."

"Ruby, hear me out," he paused for effect and looked the reaper straight in the eyes. "I don't want to make just any old bow… I want to make… the greatest bow anyone has ever seen."

He waited for a reply but Ruby remained frozen. He called her name, snapped his fingers, waved a hand in front of her face but she just stood there staring into the open air. He was afraid he had broken the poor girl and wondered if he should go look for her sister to see if maybe she knew what to do.

"On second thought, I don't want Yang to kill me," he reasoned.

The reaper surprised him with a gasp, "I've got it!"

"You've got what?"

"I - the - it, just… meet me in the library in half an hour," she told him, "I need to get started on this right away."

She ran off leaving behind only a trail of rose petals.

Jaune blinked at the outburst, "What have I gotten myself into?"

* * *

With a thermos full of coffee and Ren's sketches in hand he entered the library. He spotted Ruby's red cape by the computer area and made his way over to her. He looked over her shoulder and observed the drawing on the holographic projection.

"It definitely looks cool. How does it work?" he asked.

"Laser beam generator, fires beam through a prism, it bounces back off a second prism in the center of the bowstring and gets stopped by a beam trap in the riser. When you let go of the string the trap opens and the beam passes through a dust crystal."

"Laser bow? I don't know, it sounds a little dangerous."

"It's not, trust me, the beam's harmless but it's strong enough to excite the dust crystals. That's where the magic happens."

"Will it work?"

"Well… we'll need to fine tune the trap so we get a normal length arrows out of it and there's still the matter of cooling… but I think I can get it running."

"What about battery life?"

"The bowstring will be woven with energy dust. It'll use elastic energy to charge up. What do you think?"

"You made all of this in just half an hour? Ruby, the best I could come up with was a compound bow and a quiver full of trick arrows. This… you're a genius, thank you."

"Oh, you know, just…" she started mumbling flustered by his compliment..

He pulled the notepad from his pocket and showed it to her, "You think we'll be able to fit the electronics into the riser?"

"It might take some tweaking but I think we'll-"

She suddenly went quiet when she turned towards him and realised just how close their faces were.

In her panic she jerked backwards. The chair rocked back past its tipping point and she started flailing her arms but to no effect.

"Whoa - umph."

She stopped falling.

"Huh?"

Jaune leaned over her with a smile, "Sorry, I startled you.

He helped her back up and finally took a seat next to her.

Ruby remained silent and instead decided to focus on the projection.

"So... should we get started?"

The reaper nodded in response.

The two spent the next couple of hours transfering Ren's sketches onto the computer. The basic design was easy enough to catch and most of the decal could be either hand drawn or engraved afterwards. When it was all drawn out it was only a matter of picking out the material and sending it to a 3D print shop.

"Please allow us 3-5 working days for your transaction to process," the reaper read in a mock voice.

"You think Weiss'll notice we used her credit card?"

"Nah, Yang does it all the time."

They shared a laugh at that.

"Well, it's been fun," he stood up from his seat and stretched, "but I've got to head into the city before the stores close."

"Want me to tag along?"

"Nah, I just need to hit up a hardware store… metal shopping, I wouldn't want to bore you."

"Are you kidding me, that sounds way cool."

She kept looking at him with puppy dog eyes until he finally caved in, "Fine, Ruby… do you want to-"

"YES!"

* * *

It wasn't Ruby's first motorcycle ride and he was a way better driver than Yang, she told him. Mostly because he kept to the speed limits. They stopped at the store and picked up several ingots of various metals and then headed over to a weapons store where they bought most of the electronics for the bow. After that they made a final stop to pick up the miscellaneous materials he needed for the second project.

"My first time Yang tried to warn me stradling the bike in a combat skirt was a bad idea but I ignored her." She buried her face in her palms, "Everybody saw my underwear."

"Side saddling a bike is dangerous, you should've just worn pants."

"Combat skirts for life," Ruby proudly stated. She then observed their items on their way out, "What do you need the ray-skin for?"

"Just a little side project?"

"Ooh, can you tell me?"

"I shouldn't but…" he leaned down and whispered into her ear, "I'm making a katana."

This left the reaper gasping with excitement, "There's no way I'm missing that."

"Well, if you want to see how a real huntsman _makes_ his weapon, I guess you can come."

"Maybe you can learn something from your _real_ huntsman to.."

He glared at his fellow team leader who snickered in response.

"You've been hanging around Yang too much."

"I'm not as _punny_ as her, though."

They both shuddered at that.

"No, just… no," he said.

"Agreed."

* * *

The two shared a pizza before heading back to Beacon. Jaune explained the entire metalworking process to the reaper the best he could. He half-expected to bore her to death with all the technical talk but she hung on his every word. He didn't understand the exact science behind each step but he had sufficient practical knowledge to pull the project off.

He called Ren right after they returned and headed to the forge. Ren joined up with them bringing the donor with him.

Stormflower

He was quite surprised how coldly Ren drilled through the rivets holding the verdant blades in place. He disassembled the weapon and put the guns away. They were still fully functional and he didn't want them getting in the way. The next part was much more emotional. Ren stared at the steel silently. It took him several minutes to gather the courage.

The raven haired teen raised the hammer high over his head then struck down on the steel.

The blade shattered and he repeated the process with the second one.

He dropped the hammer and braced his arms on the workbench. It seemed the reality of his actions finally caught up with him. A sigh escaped his lips along with a gentle sorry.

Jaune put a hand on his shoulder and gave him a nod in condolence.

"You can sit down if you need."

"I'll be alright, Jaune."

The knight took over from there on and tile stacked the fragments to forge welded together. In the following hours they drew out the ingot several times and folded it back onto itself doubling the layer count with each repetition. They completely lost track of time until Ruby pointed it out to them.

The next day they inserted the iron that would make up the sword's spine and started drawing out the shape. He could've easily made it a full length katana but when it came time to forge the tip ren insisted on taking off more material than he had originally intended. At just under 12 inches plus the tang it would fall into the tanto category. Still, there was enough leftover material for a second blade if he'd ever need it but right now, time wasn't on their side.

He had planned to complete the project in one weekend but that proved unrealistic. He apologised to Ren but he seemed less bothered by it. He still had his guns as well as his father's knife.

Those, however, proved poor replacements for Stormflower's versatility. The next day professor Goodwitch pitted him against Scarlet David, one of Sun's teammates. It was gun and knife against gun and sword. Needless to say, his teammate lost quite badly.

He was just glad team JNPR had Pyrrha to pick up the slack and bring in the points to qualify for the Vytal festival.

As soon as the bell rang they headed right back to the forge. Jaune readied the horizontal water tank and got a nice fire going while Ren applied the clay to the spine of the sword. The knight observed his teammates handiwork. He was astonished how even of a hamon Ren had created.

"Great work."

"Thank you."

"Of course, now comes the make or break part," he explained gazing at the water tank.

"Are you nervous?"

"A little, I mean we're probably on the safe side because of the length but still," Jaune replied.

"If it breaks, we can alway try again."

Jaune swallowed the lump in his throat then carefully placed the steel into the burning coals and waited. His stare burned with an intensity that rivaled that of the coal. He watched as the steel changed color with the rising temperature. Once there was an even glow he pulled it from the fire and brought it over to the tank.

He took a deep breath before lowering it for the quench.

The water sizzled when the white hot steel entered.

These next seconds were critical

But as long as it remained quiet

As long as there was no metallic ting

…

Nothing

Ren stepped back allowing Jaune to remove the blade from the water tank.

He observed the edge for any warping but the blade was as straight as when it went it.

The quench had gone perfectly.

"We did it."

For the briefest moment he could swear he saw a smile on Ren's face. He clamped the tang into a vice and removed his gloves and apron. They could finally behold their creation in all its glory.

"You'll need to grind off the clay, sharpen the edge, etch it. You can add some engravings if you want but I think that ship has sailed," he released a groan in frustration. They were pressed for time and he forgot to present him the option, "and the handle…"

"Jaune."

"Huh?"

"It's alright, you've done so much already but I believe I can finish it myself."

"Okay but if you need anything, don't hesitate."


End file.
